A Rose for Auradon
by obsessive360
Summary: Ben always loved his sister, even if she was the reincarnation of the person who cursed their father. But Rose had been taken to the Isle of the Lost at a young age in the hopes of the barrier keeping her safe from harming anyone with her power. Now, Ben is determined to bring her home...with some Villain's kids coming along for the ride!
1. Cast List

Cast List

Mal D'Arcy...Dove Cameron

Evie Irving...Sofia Carson

Jayden "Jay" Nagendra...Booboo Stewart

Carlos de Vil...Cameron Boyce

Prince Benjamin "Ben" Florian Devereux...Mitchell Hope

Princess Rose Belle Devereux...Ryan Newman

Jane Bellamy...Brenna D'Amico

Princess Audrey Drummond...Sarah Jeffrey

Li Lonnie...Dianne Doan

Prince Chad Charming...Jedidiah Goodacre

Sir Doug Kurzmann...Zachary Gibson

Princess Amira of Agrabah…Janel Parish

Prince Aziz of Agrabah…Avan Jogia

Princess Anxlin Fitzhurbert…Sabrina Carpenter

King Adam "Beast" Devereux...Chris Hemsworth

Queen Belle Devereux... Emilie de Ravin

Sir Maurice Laroque…Kevin Kline

Lady Elizabeth Potts Laroque…Emma Thompson

Professor (Lord) Christopher ‟Chip" Potts… Andrew Garfield

Esme "Fairy Godmother" Bellamy...Melanie Paxson

Secretary [of Defense] Li (Fa) Mulan…Ming Na-Wen

General Li Shang…Daniel Dae Kim

Queen Cinderella Charming…Rosamund Pike

King Henri Charming…Liam Hemsworth

Queen Snow White Ackermann…Ginnifer Goodwin

King Florian Ackermann…Brandon Routh

Queen Aurora Drummond…Drew Barrymore

King Phillip Drummond…Johnny Depp

Queen Leah Ahlberg…Jane Seymour

King Stefan Ahlberg…Christopher Guest

King Naveen Bonhomme…Shamar Moore

Queen Tiana Bonhomme…Regina King

Princess Miranda Bonhomme…Lyndie Greenwood

Lady Sophie Hamada of San Fransokyo…Nichole Beharie

Lord Hiro Hamada of San Fransokyo…Osric Chau

Queen Rapunzel Fitzhurbert of Corona…Mandy Moore

King Eugene Fitzhurbert of Corona…Zachary Levi

Sultan Aladdin of Agrabah…Oded Fehr

Sultana Jasmine of Agrabah…Marisol Nichols

Maleficent D'Arcy...Kristen Chenoweth

"Evil" Queen Grimhilde Irving...Kathy Najimy

Cruella de Vil...Wendy Raquel Robinson

Jafar Nagendra…Maz Jobrani


	2. The First of Many Firsts

**A/N: If you are reading this, then you have obviously watched Disney's** _ **Descendants**_ **. The continuity errors aside, I enjoyed the movie. When this idea first struck me, moments after the movie ended, I knew I had to start writing it down. I hope you enjoy this! Read & Review, please.**

 **P.S., I am not meaning to bash/villainize any Disney hero or heroine. I will preface this story by saying that Belle and Beast/Adam are my favorite Disney royals and always have been. Enjoy!**

The First of Many Firsts

Once upon a time, in the land of fairytales, there lived a prince who was cursed by an enchantress. This prince was a hideous, furry, ill-mannered beast for ten years; then he met and struck a deal with a beautiful young woman from the nearby village: herself in exchange for her father's freedom. This woman was Belle, and the prince was obviously the Beast. Well, after Belle broke the curse, she and her prince, Adam, were married in front of 6,000 of their closest friends. Shortly after, Prince Adam and Princess Belle led the way in the uniting of the fairytale kingdoms as the United States of Auradon. In the process, they got themselves elected as the rulers of the new country. As his first royal decree as King of Auradon, King Adam (fondly called King Beast) had all of the villains, sidekicks, and minions tossed onto an island with a magic-limiting barrier surrounding it. The land was in a time of great prosperity and peace after this.

Four years later, the King and Queen were blessed with twins. Prince Benjamin Florian Devereux was born five minutes before his sister, Princess Rose Belle Devereux. The family of four had the perfect life, at least for the first couple of years anyway.

Far away from Auradon City, in a little cottage on the Isle of the Lost, the enchantress passed away peacefully in her sleep the night the twins were born. There can only ever be one enchantress, so the new enchantress is born whenever the old one dies. She had been the very enchantress that cursed King Adam, so it came as an ironic shock that her powers passed to Princess Rose. No one outside of the young girl's immediate family and closest servants knew this secret; Queen Belle feared it would mean sending her daughter away, as the magic of an enchantress cannot be restrained the way other magic, like the Fairy Godmother's or the Evil Queen's, could. It was a relief when the princess showed no signs of the powers she had in her first two years of life, as that would have brought a whole new meaning to the phrase "Terrible Twos." It was on the twins third birthday, however, that Princess Rose's powers came in.

The twins' birthday party was being held in Queen Belle's rose garden, and the beautiful spring weather only added to the party's splendor. Everyone was having a good time, the children were playing together, and the adults were drinking tea and chatting away merrily. Then, Princess Audrey Drummond, daughter of Queen Aurora and King Phillip Drummond, decided she wanted to gain Prince Benjamin's attention. Little Prince Ben had been playing a game of tag with his sister, and when Princess Audrey accidentally knocked the smaller girl over as she ran towards the girl's brother, Princess Rose began crying. The more she cried, the darker the sky became until buckets of rain began to fall onto the birthday party. A pink glow of magic surrounded her, as she was the lone dry body in the garden. Instantly, King Adam scooped his daughter up and cradled her close to his chest. The magic faded and the rain stopped. Every last one of the guests stared in shock. The secret was out.

Two days later, King Adam and Queen Belle made the decision to send their daughter away to the only place they believed could put a cap on her magic and possibly keep it from getting out of hand: The Isle of the Lost. The little girl was, due to the fear held by the limo driver, left to her own devices once she set foot on the island. The limo driver, who was supposed to take her to the girls' home on the isle, threw the car into reverse and bolted back across the open water to Auradon City. With that going the way it did, for the next seven years of her life, the beautiful little toddler princess was forced to lie, steal, beg, charm, and cheat for her own survival. All of this time, she was alone. Then something amazing happened to her…

It was raining. Near flooding might be more accurate; and here Rose was, hiding in the dark alley beside a restaurant called Ursula's Fish N' Chips, her only form of shelter being a rapidly deteriorating cardboard box. She was nearly asleep when the sound of feet splashing through the water made her sit straight up inside her box and hug her knees to her chest.

"Lagan, Derelict, what did you two find now?", a young, male voice asked as a pair of black boots neared the box.

"W-w-who are you? What do you want?", Rose forced herself to ask as the face of a boy around her age came into view.

"My name's Jayden, but everyone calls me Jay. Why are you out here in this storm? I'm sorry about that, by the way. It's kind of my fault.", the boy replied, a pink hue appearing on his tanned face.

"I don't have anywhere else to go. Why are you out here, and what do you mean it's your fault?", Rose replied curiously.

"My father wants me to become a master thief one day, so that I can help stock the shelves at his store, so he asked me to steal Maleficent's spell book. When she found out, they got into a huge fight. I think she might have caused this.", Jay answered, still not explaining why he was out in the storm.

"She didn't cause it. I did. You still didn't answer my other question.", she said quietly, but Jay only became more confused.

"How did you cause this?", he asked, his tone one of concern.

"Do you know how they say there can only ever be one enchantress alive at a time? Well, when the last one died, I was born. My twin brother got off easy. He's living the good life in Auradon City with my parents; Mom and Dad couldn't stand the thought of their little princess being the enchantress, I think, mostly because the last one is who turned my father into a beast for ten years, so I was brought here. I can only imagine that they intended for me to live somewhere better than in alleyways, but the limo driver took off as soon as I got out of the car. Sometimes, when I'm hurt or sad, my powers act up, and I lose control over them. Today was fine. I saved up enough money that I found to buy myself some bread, and I was on my way to the baker's when Mal D'Arcy found me and stole it all.", Rose admitted, and Jay was shocked; this girl was King Beast's daughter?

"If that was what made you upset enough to cause this storm, I can get your money back. I know Mal, so she might listen to me if I ask her.", he offered.

"While that's sweet of you, it wasn't the only thing. Over the last seven years, I learned what you have to do to survive here. I steal things, I barter and trade, and I lie through my teeth to make my way into most people's good graces. Because I've never been able to go to school, I used my powers to create a link to my brother. Ben knows about the bond, and Ben knows where I am and how I'm doing. But, he doesn't know how the bond works; whatever he knows, I know. I say I created it, but really I just enhanced our natural twin bond. I would have been fine if Mal had only stole my money for bread, but when she pushed me to the ground, stole my blue silk hair ribbon, and called me ugly, that hurt more than anything. If it makes me sound even more like a pathetic and sorry excuse for an enchantress, today's my tenth birthday.", Rose's tears were falling fast at this point, and Jay was disgusted with his frenemy, though he knew it was really her mother's doing.

"Look, you shouldn't be so angry with Mal. Her mom is horrible to deal with, and all I've ever seen her do with Mal is tell the girl she's not evil or wicked enough. More than likely, Mal had an argument with her mom before she ran into you. Then again, if Maleficent was mad at Mal, it was probably misplaced anger. That means it's back to being my fault.", Jay said, and Rose actually laughed.

"You really don't want me to blame myself for this. Hey, it stopped! Are those two eels your pets?", she asked as the sky cleared (as best it could) and Lagan and Derelict wiggled uncomfortably.

"Yeah, you might have heard me call their names out when they guided me to you. This is Derelict, and this is Lagan. I should probably get them home soon. Will you still be here tonight?", Jay asked the young girl beside him.

"It depends on if I can dry up the streets. While the barrier can't contain my magic, it can't control it either. I've had to train myself, and cleaning up after I flood the island has never been easy. If I get it done, then no, I'll have moved on to a different alley. If I haven't, I'll probably still be in this box.", Rose told him with a smile.

"In that case, meet me outside of The Bargain Castle tonight, please?", Jay's request seemed like a safe enough thing to do, so Rose nodded.

"Sure, but there's one more think you'll need to know before you leave.", she said, building to the one question Jay had not asked her.

"What's that?", he asked, and she giggled.

"My name.", and Jay began to chuckle.

"I probably should have asked you that before, right? You would think, as you are a princess, I'd already know your name from what they teach us in school, but while you were mentioned, your name never was.", his expression was, dare Rose admit it, cute when he realized he did not actually know his new friend's name.

"It's Rose, Rose Belle Devereux.", she told him, the fact that her name went unsaid not even bothering her.

"That sounds really pretty. I'll see you tonight, Princess.", Jay said as he and his eels hurried back up the alley.

"I'll see you then! Oh, and, Jay!", he stopped at the mouth of the alley and turned around when she called his name.

"Yes?"

"I don't think of myself as a princess anymore, so don't call me that!", she told him with a giggle.

"I'll call you 'Princess' if I want to! I say it's your official nickname!", and then he was gone, leaving a smiling and giggling Rose in his wake.

That night, after she finally managed to expel the rain water from the island, Rose stood outside The Bargain Castle. After a few minutes, Jay came walking out of the store's front doors. Rose raised a curious eyebrow at him.

"So Jafar is your father? Okay, while you may be a Nagendra, I won't hold that against you. After all, I told you about how my supposedly saint-like parents got rid of me because of what my predecessor did. Now, why am I here?", she asked him point blank when he reached her.

"I wanted to make sure that you had a good birthday. C'mon, Princess, let's go have some villain kid fun!", Jay answered, taking her hand and starting down the street.

"What kind of villain kid fun?", Rose asked amidst her giggles.

"Oh, you know, just a bit of thievery with a dash of pranking, nothing too extreme. We wouldn't want anyone to mess up your pretty face, now, would we?", Jay responded, and Rose blushed.

"You think I'm pretty?", she asked shyly.

Jay looked at Rose as if she had gone insane. His eyes lingered on her mahogany curls, rosy cheeks, bright periwinkle eyes, peachy skin, petite frame, and blood read lips for about ten seconds each before responding. The minute of silence only caused Rose's blush to deepen.

"Rose, you are beautiful. I may only be ten years old, but even I can tell how beautiful you are. Hasn't anyone ever told you that before?", he asked, his ten year old brain completely confused by this new information.

"I've been called cute by some of the people I charm stuff from, and sometimes they call me adorable, but I've never been called anything close to beautiful or pretty. I mean, I always thought pretty meant an unnatural-natural hair color, mirroring your parent's style to the nines, and wearing make-up from a young age to hide any and all imperfections when you live the Isle.", she told him with a shrug, and Jay let out a sigh.

"Who else, other than Mal, bullies you?", he asked her gently.

"Nearly everyone I meet does. I never tell them who I happen to be because of that; you're my first friend, Jay. You're the only one who hasn't stolen from me or called me a rude name. Even Evie Irving, the castle-schooled girl, makes fun of me.", Rose admitted, and Jay shook his head.

"Just give me a few days, and you'll never have to worry about them again. Wait a minute, does Carlos de Vil give you a hard time too?", Jay asked as he thought about the eight year old tech-genius he occasionally hung out with.

"No, Carlos is a sweet kid. He's just not my friend because his mother told him I would send for a dog from the mainland to eat him if he didn't behave. Dogs are nothing like what she tells him, you know.", Rose answered, giggling at the memory she has of the younger boy.

"What are they really like?", Jay asked with a smile as they walked through town.

"Dogs are sweet creatures, most of the time at least. My father's dog, Sultan, was the most innocent little dog ever. All he ever wanted to do was run around the gardens and play with Ben and me. If Sultan felt someone was a threat, however, he would bite them. When I was about two years old, before I was brought here, Princess Audrey Drummond, Queen Aurora's daughter, pulled on his tail. Sultan turned around and jumped at her; he didn't break the skin, but he bit her hand nonetheless. Of course, after that Sultan wasn't allowed to play with us when we had friends over for playdates. She always did meddle in things and ruin my life. I cannot stand that girl!", Rose began to get angry, and a bolt of lightning shot across the sky.

"Calm down, Princess. It's not like Audrey's here to do anything now, right? Come on, I have an idea.", Jay said gently as he put an arm around her shoulders and gave her a half-hug.

Rose smiled, and the two took off towards the nearest alleyway. There was a ladder bolted to one of the walls, and Rose watched as Jay scaled it effortlessly. He turned, when he was about halfway up, and gestured for her to follow him. After making sure no one was around, Rose raced up the ladder after her friend.

"C'mon, Princess, we're going across the roofs.", he whispered, taking her hand and starting to run across the rooftop.

"Are you sure we should be doing this? What if I fall?", she asked him as they neared the end of the roof.

"Do you trust me?", Jay asked, but Rose looked confused; where had she heard that phrase before, in which fairytale?

"What?", she asked.

"Do you trust me?", the edge was getting nearer, so Rose made a snap decision.

"Yes!", she told him as they jumped off of the roof, landing on the roof of the next building, as it was a mere three feet below them.

Rose giggled, and her giggles turned into uncontrollable laughter. Soon, her laughter infected Jay, and the two ten year olds rolled around on the roof, laughing, for about fifteen minutes. When they calmed down and stood back up, Rose held out her hand to Jay, who gladly accepted.

"That was fun!", she cheered.

"Wanna do it again?", he asked, and Rose nodded excitedly.

They jumped from building to building, laughing as the sense of overwhelming freedom overcame both of them. When Jay finally began to slow down, Rose was finally able to register the bright flashes of light in her peripheral vision. It was fireworks from Auradon City.

"Nice to see they're still celebrating Ben's birthday in style.", she mumbled glumly, but Jay heard her as they were the only ones on the roof.

"I'm sure someone over there, probably your parents, is also celebrating your birthday, Princess. They're your parents, so they have to still love you, right?", if Jay didn't fall from the roof at Rose's reply, it was only because he still had ahold of her hand and wasn't going to make her fall along with him.

"If my parents loved me, they wouldn't have been embarrassed about my magic and sent me away in order to maintain their public image. In seven years, I have never received a birthday present, a birthday card, or even any form of acknowledgement from them. As much as I would like to believe that they still love me, I have no reason to believe they even still consider me their daughter.", she sat down as she spoke, unintentionally bringing Jay to sit cross-legged beside her.

"Well, seeing as how part of the castle has been lit up with pink lights, I'd say they still love you. Maybe they never sent you anything because they couldn't find you? I know, they could have sent out an announcement, but I'm not the best at being optimistic. I'm a villain kid, so that's not exactly a talent of mine.", he said in attempt to make her feel better.

"Maybe you're right. Hey, what's that?", Rose responded, her eyes landing on the small, gold-colored box in Jay's other hand.

"It's a present, your present if you want it to be.", Jay answered shyly, and Rose giggled at his flushed cheeks.

"You got me a birthday present, Jay?", she asked him as the small box was placed in her lap.

"Oh, just open it!", he insisted eagerly, fake-glaring at her.

Rose let go of his hand and playfully slapped his shoulder before opening the box. Inside, she found a golden cobra necklace. The cobra's eyes were set with pink gemstones, and the chain was just long enough for her to slip the entire thing over her head and let it fall to her sternum.

"It's beautiful! Where did this come from?", she asked as she examined the cobra pendant closer.

"It was my mom's. She sold it to Medusa in order to help keep my dad's shop afloat, and the crazy woman was going to rip the pink sapphires from the cobra's eyes sell the gold for scrap. I couldn't let that happen, so I stole the necklace from her a few years ago. I intended to give it back to my mom, but she died before I could. My dad told me it was my fault, said she traded her soul to Hades in order to not die in childbirth when she had me. The deal was, because Hades couldn't actually take her soul, she would give him me when I turned six. The night he sent Pain and Panic to collect me, I was stealing the necklace; so, because I was nowhere to be found, they brought my mom to Hades, and he killed her. If I had just been home, she'd still be alive.", Jay held back tears as he spoke of his mother, but Rose, who knew the pain of being blamed for events that were completely out of your control, just leaned into him and let her head fall onto his shoulder and her hand fall onto his.

"This isn't your fault. If I know anything, it's that people react in ways they normally wouldn't when they're sad, scared, and angry. If anyone is at fault, it's your mother for having so little faith in the, albeit sucky, healthcare system we have on this island that she traded her unborn child for her own life. Why do kids like us make more sense on this island than any of the adults do?", she said softly, and Jay found he had no answer, as he himself had been pondering that question for years.

"I don't know. I'm glad we met, Princess, and I'm glad we're friends.", he told her, and Rose let out a giggle.

"Jay, I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.", she said with a smile.

"Ya know, I think it is.", he told her, and she giggled softly before stifling a yawn.

"This has been the best birthday ever, Jay. I want to do this every year! Thank you, for everything!", she whispered, glad, for the first time in memory, that it was her birthday.

"It's no problem, and I promise you that we will; happy birthday, Rose.", he whispered back, holding onto her hand tightly.

The two continued to watch the fireworks from Ben's party as they sat together on the moonlit roof, nothing bothering them for the first time in their young lives.

For the next several years, Rose managed to sneak around enough that she was generally able to avoid nearly everyone her age on the Isle of the Lost. The only exceptions were Jay and Carlos, as the two of them always managed to pop up and stick to her like glue whenever she went into the marketplace. It was safe to say that her relationship with the two boys changed dramatically over the course of six years.

Carlos, after the two became friends, was like the younger brother Rose never had. He was a little tech genius who knew how to hack and operate nearly any device purely on instinct and prior experience, no manual needed. Carlos helped fix her old, beat up pink and blue radio after Mal smashed it once; and in return, Rose told him the truth about dogs. He never told his mother that he knew she was a liar, and he acted the part of a scared little kid so well, she was none the wiser.

Rose's relationship with Jay, however, advanced beyond the point of relatively sibling feelings to the feeling of young love. It started when they were thirteen, and it was all Mal's fault. The purple-haired young fairy had cornered Rose in an alley one day, and she was hell-bent on taking the cobra pendant from Rose's neck.

"You can't have it, Mal!", Rose screamed, looking for a way out only to find herself trapped.

"What are you going to do to stop me? You're just a little no named freak who lives in alleyways. I'm not sure how you've avoided me for so long, but it doesn't matter anyway. Now, give that to me!", Mal taunted, unaware that Rose was the enchantress.

"This necklace is special! It was a birthday gift from my best friend, and I refuse to let you take it.", as Rose's anger built, a storm began to build overhead; and across town at The Bargain Castle, Jay knew something was wrong with his friend, so he snuck out of his room and ran across rooftops until he reached the correct alley.

Rose was backed up against the wall, no way to escape the girl in front of her, and she had her right hand tightly clasped on the cobra necklace. Mal was closing in on her, a hand reaching out for the chain. Her taunting only got worse.

"What loser would be your friend, let alone give you a birthday present?", she jeered, and Jay deftly made his way down the ladder and up behind Mal.

"Perhaps it was the same _loser_ who was kind enough to convince his father to take you and your mother in when your dad got sick and your mom couldn't scare the landlord into letting the two of you stay in your old apartment?", he said angrily as Mal whipped around to face him.

"Jay, what are you doing here?", she asked, as Rose ran forward and threw her arms around the young teen boy's shoulders, tears running down her face.

"It'll okay, Princess, I'm here now. You can walk back to the shop with Mal and me, and then I'll get Carlos so the three of us can hang out. We can't have you crying those pretty little eyes out and bringing on another flood, now, can we?", he ignored Mal and chose to hug his best friend to his chest and comfort her, and the brunette girl giggled into his shoulder.

"Hello, I asked you a question!", Mal said impatiently.

"Mal, this is Rose. The necklace she's wearing belonged to my mother, and I gave it to her three years ago.", Jay said as he looked from Mal to Rose and back again.

"Wow, I didn't know you had a girlfriend!", Mal gushed, and Jay's cheeks swiftly became a light pink color.

"Rose isn't my girlfriend!", he told Mal quickly, and Rose felt her hopes and dreams deflate a bit.

"I thought she was, based on the way you were looking at her. Oh well, I can be wrong, I guess. Can I hang out with you guys today too? My mom is driving me crazy with all of this extra evilness practice!", Mal responded, and Rose suddenly felt sick.

"Sure, I guess. Is that okay with you, Princess?", Jay's question fell on deaf ears as Rose untangled herself from him.

"You guys can go and do whatever. I'm not feeling so well, so I think I'll just stay put. Go on, go have fun. I'll be fine.", she insisted, and Mal nodded.

"Rose, what's wrong?", Jay asked, not buying his friend's story.

"Nothing's wrong, Jay. Go hang out with your friend, just leave me be. I'll be fine, I promise. You act as if I can't look after myself! I'm not a small child!", Rose snapped, praying he would leave with Mal and let her sit down to cry in peace.

"Did you ever think I just wanted you to come with us so that I could spend time with you?", Jay whispered to her sadly before walking away, but Rose did not hear him.

Now alone, Rose climbed up the ladder, sat down on the rooftop, and cried for nearly an hour, storm clouds quickly forming over the Isle of the Lost for the second time that day. Her chest hurt; it ached so bad that it felt like someone had plunged a dagger straight into her heart, and she knew exactly why. Just like with Princess Audrey, ten years before, Mal had a habit of ruining all of the good things in Rose's life. Rose knew she had a crush on Jay, and she hoped he felt the same way about her. But with the way he acted around Mal, Rose felt it was painfully obvious which girl had won his affections with ease. She knew there was a chance of getting rejected, but she had no clue as to why it stung so much.

"Hey, Rosie, what's wrong?", she jumped when Carlos popped up beside her.

"Nothing you would understand, Carlos.", she told him gently as she wiped her eyes with the sleeve of the red, yellow, and blue sweatshirt she wore; it was an old one of Jay's that he gave to her as a gift.

"Is it about your fight with Jay earlier? He was pretty upset when he came home. He went to his room and locked the door; he wouldn't let Mal or me in. She said you two were arguing earlier.", Rose smiled at her adoptive little brother, trying to keep her emotions in check.

"It was nothing. Jay hasn't realized what he really wants yet, so I made the decision for him. It was silly to think he might've ever had a crush on me, so I knew he obviously had to have a crush on Mal when he told her that I wasn't his girlfriend earlier. I mean, Mal is so pretty and smart! I'm nothing next to her! I just wish this could have waited to occur until tomorrow or something. Do you wanna watch the fireworks with me tonight?", she asked the eleven year old, and Carlos gasped.

"But you always watch the fireworks with Jay on your birthday! I could never take his place, Rosie! And really, you think he likes _Mal_? Rosie, you're the closest thing I have to a big sister, so listen to me when I tell you that you are so much better than Mal. I mean, those clouds up there, you created them out of nothing but sadness and anger! You know how to make me feel better when my mom yells at me and bosses me around like a servant. You have pretty hair and pretty eyes. You're an awesome friend, Rose! If Jay _doesn't_ have a crush on you, he's dumber than any of us thought!", Carlos said, which made Rose laugh.

"Thanks, Carlos, it means a lot that you care and believe that; but obviously no one else does. You know, Jay never even told Mal I was his friend? He just said he gave me the cobra necklace three years ago. It was like, aside from him hugging me, someone I barely knew was talking to Mal.", she said, and Carlos thought she sounded a bit bitter.

"He was probably too angry to say anything much because he promised us he wouldn't let Mal bully us anymore, and you know how Jay hates to break his promises. Oh, look, they've started lighting the castle for your birthday again! Are you why the rose garden is always pink?", the young de Vil asked as he saw the castle in Auradon City light up blue, pink, and gold.

"Yes, I am. I'm not sure why, though, as that was the place where my powers came in and I was forced from my home. You would think the mother and father that left me here wouldn't want to remember that day, but there you have it, a pink rose garden filled to the brim with the most beautiful roses in all of Auradon.", she answered, and this time even she knew she sounded harsh and cruel.

"All except one.", a familiar voice said from somewhere behind them.

The two turned to find Jay leaning against the maintenance booth for the building's air conditioning units. He gave Carlos a silent look that told him to go away; it was a look Carlos was used to getting on Rose's birthday, so he just sighed and stood up.

"Happy birthday, Rosie, here's your present!", he told his friend before handing her a black and white box.

Rose smiled, opened the box, and pulled out a pair of fingerless, elbow length gloves. They were white with small, black polka dots; they were trimmed with black lace at both ends, and little black bows adorned the finger end of the gloves. The gloves were just Rose's style.

"I love them, Carlos, thank you!", Rose said to him, and Carlos smiled at her before running off across the rooftops.

The next few minutes passed in silence, as Rose was unsure how much of what she said Jay now knew. Did he know how she felt? Was he mad at her? Was he actually here to spend her birthday with her like he did every year, or was this a prank?

"Carlos was right. I'd have to be pretty stupid to choose Mal over you, Princess. I'm sorry if I made it seem like I had a crush on her earlier, but that's just not true. I could never have a crush on Mal, Rose, because I don't think I can choose anyone other than you. _You're_ my girl, and I never wanna lose you. Please, Princess, don't shut me out!", it was this declaration of confirmed mutual attraction that made Rose turn to look Jay in the eye for the first time since she snapped at him in the alleyway below.

"If you feel that way, why didn't you tell Mal that I was your girlfriend?", she asked as she moved closer to him.

"I didn't think it was right to tell her that without actually asking you first.", he answered honestly with a bashful smile.

"Ask me, then.", Rose said in barely a whisper as she stopped in front of him, her smile spreading from ear to ear.

"Rose Belle Devereux, Princess of Auradon who does not consider herself to be a princess anymore, will you be my girlfriend?", Jay asked, taking Rose's hand in his own.

"Yes, Jay, I will.", she answered, and then he kissed her.

For it being the first kiss for both of them, it hadn't been a bad kiss, Rose felt. Reflecting on it three years later, Jay was inclined to agree. As it was, their relationship had remained steady for the past three years; they had a strong bond, and not even Mal could tear them apart on a bad day. It had helped that she and Rose were now best friends at this point; the two girls were close enough that Mal went to Rose with a majority of her problems. She was only all too happy to help, as Mal was who would patiently listen to her on the ever so rare occasion when Rose and Jay fought. It was with one of Mal's many advice-seeking moments that Rose first felt things were going to change.

"Rose! Rose! Rose, wake up!", that was how Rose woke up that morning.

The sun had barely risen, and Mal was shaking her shoulders. Rose sighed, sat up straight, and stretched. Something had to be bothering Mal for her to climb all the way to the tower of The Bargain Castle before ten in the morning.

"What's wrong, Mally?", Rose asked as she shook off the last traces of sleep.

"I had a really weird dream, Sissy! It was so strange!", Mal replied, and Rose chuckled at the use of Mal's nickname for her; not only was it short for Princess, but it was also used to show the closeness they had, almost like sisters.

"Tell me about it. I might be able to tell you something.", Rose stated, and Mal nodded quickly.

"Well, I was at an enchanted lake. Don't ask me how I know, I just do. There was a boy there, about our age. He was, and I'm going to sound like Evie here, cute; he was super cute, even! He made me feel...not evil."

If Rose had expected that to come out of Mal's mouth, she would have been considered a psychic.

"Well, what did this boy look like?", she asked, and Mal got an odd, dreamy look on her face.

"His hair was a blondish-brown color; his eyes were hazel; his skin was tanner than mine, but how hard is that really; and his smile was perfect!", Rose groaned internally before moving onto the next question.

"And how did you feel about the feeling he gave you?", Mal squealed as quietly as it was possible to squeal before answering.

"That's the part I don't understand! I like the feeling of not being evil that he gave me. I like feeling like nothing could hold me back as long as I was with him, like I could fly or leap tall buildings in a single bound!", Rose chuckled at her friend.

"Mal, that's Superman. Anyway, it sounds like you're in love with this boy. Do you know him, is he from around here?", she asked the fairy, but Mal shook her head.

"I've never seen this guy before in my life until my dream.", well, that was certainly weird then.

"Well, as weird as that is, there has to be something about it in one of these books you and Evie got me for my birthday. Thanks for those, by the way. Whoa!", Rose moved a strand of hair out of her face, only for Mal to catch a glint of something sparkly and yank her friend closer by the hand.

"Oh my-did Jay do what I think he did?", was the only thing the purple-haired girl managed to say.

"Oops! Secret's out, I guess. I thought I put this thing back in the box last night before I went to sleep?", Rose muttered to herself as she toyed with the diamond ring on her left hand.

"You're only sixteen, so you can't be serious!", Mal said incredulously.

"We are. Mal, all of those things you said this mystery boy made you feel, that's how I've felt with Jay ever since I was ten years old and we went jumping across rooftops on my birthday. It's not like we're going to do this tomorrow or anything; it's just a way of saying it'll always be the two of us. As for your unasked question that I know is entering your mind now, he didn't steal it. The Queen of Hearts had it first, but when she saw the rose wasn't red, she threw a fit and wanted to destroy it. Jay offered her about ten bucks for it, and she handed it over just to get rid of it. The box he gave it to me in, on the other hand, was stolen from Medusa. She tends to throw out anything that isn't shiny and valuable, so it wasn't like she'd miss it.", Rose responded with what she knew was probably a dorky smile as she picked up the velvet rose from her bedside table and opened the top of the flower; it was a ring box.

"If I thought you should hide it away from everyone, Princess, I wouldn't have given it to you.", Jay's voice floated over to the two girls as he ascended the stairs.

"How did you know she was trying to put the ring back in the box?", Mal asked.

"Easy, it took me two weeks to convince her to wear those earrings. I didn't think for one minute she'd not try to put the ring away before going outside.", he responded as he sat down on Rose's bed and pulled her towards him.

"The last time I wore something valuable and shiny outside, someone tried to steal it, so excuse me for being cautious.", Rose teased, fake-glaring at Mal.

"Gosh, you try to steal one cobra necklace and you can never live it down!", she threw back with a laugh.

"Hey, why wasn't I invited to the party?", Carlos had entered the room.

"Good morning, little brother! How did last night go?", Rose asked, as Carlos had been planning to ask his mother how his father died.

"Horrible! She decided to tell me he was mauled to death by a dog, so I had to act all scared and upset!", he huffed as he collapsed onto the bench at the end of the bed beside Mal.

"Sometimes not knowing the truth is better. Take it from me, because I'd be a lot happier if I didn't know how my dad died.", Mal told him, and Jay nodded.

"If my dad never reminded me of my mom's death ever again, it would be too soon.", he told the younger boy, and Carlos sighed.

"I get what you guys are saying, but I would still like to know in case it was something like a health problem that I might wind up with in the future. Also, I'd love it if she would stop lying to me!", Carlos replied, his anger at his mother growing.

"At least you know who both of your parents are. You could be like me and not know anything about your father.", Evie said as she joined them.

"Believe me, sometimes, knowing everything about your father isn't any better either. I still love my father, if only because I know he must still love me if the garden is lit up pink every year on my birthday; but it does hurt to know that he was so scared of what I still have the potential to become that he and my mother sent me here.", Rose countered, and Carlos nodded.

"You guys are all right about this, but I just hoped she would have an actual conversation with me for once. I thought that would be a topic we could have one about. Shows what I know, right?", Carlos replied bitterly.

"C'mere, Baby Brother.", Rose said as she held out her arms towards Carlos, and the fourteen year old moved closer to the enchantress.

Rose wrapped her arms around Carlos and ran her fingers gently through his platinum blonde, spiky locks. Jay understood that Carlos needed Rose more than he did at the moment, so he moved over in Rose's large bed to allow room for the younger boy. Mal and Evie did not appear to realize how often this happened until this moment.

"Will you sing me your parents' song again, Rosie?", the boy asked softly, and Rose could hardly say no.

"Sure, Carlos, I'll sing it. Would you like to help me, Jay?", she replied before turning her blue eyes on the tanned sixteen year old beside her, and he nodded as she began singing. "Tale as old as time

True as it can be

Barely even friends

Then somebody bends, unexpectedly

Just a little change

Small to say the least

Both a little scared

Neither one prepared

Beauty and the Beast

Ever just the same

Ever a surprise

Ever as before

Ever just as sure

As the sun will rise"

"Tale as old as time

Tune as old as song

Bittersweet and strange

Finding you can change

Learning you were wrong

Certain as the sun

Rising in the East

Tale as old as time

Song as old as rhyme

Beauty and the Beast", Jay sang, surprising Evie and Mal.

"Tale as old as time

Song as old as rhyme

Beauty and the Beast", the young couple sang together.

"Rest, Carlos. We'll wake you up in a bit when we get back with breakfast. I love you, little brother.", Rose whispered to Carlos as he slipped into unconsciousness.

"Love you more, Big Sister.", Carlos mumbled as he fell face first into a pillow upon Rose and Jay moving off of the bed.

After this, Jay escorted Mal and Evie downstairs while Rose got ready to go out. Mal gave Jay a curious look, but he merely shrugged. He knew what his friend was thinking of at this point.

"Carlos was twelve, his mom had severely upset him, and he went looking for Rose in the middle of the night.", Jay explained to her and Evie as the trio descended the spiral staircase.

"And you know all of this because?", Mal asked in a manner that suggested that she really did _not_ want to know.

"Nothing like _that_ , Mal. It was Rose's fourteenth birthday, and I always sleep in her room on her birthday. By the time we get back from watching the fireworks, it's always too late for me to get back into my room without my dad hearing me. Nothing was going on between us, and Carlos was scared. His mom was having one of her bad days, and he was her victim of choice. This happens a lot more than you realize, and it's become a routine of sorts for the three of us. We're not trying to keep you two out, but he trusts us more than anyone else.", Jay clarified, and the two teen girls nodded.

At that time, Rose met them at the bottom of the stairs. She was dressed in a pair of black jeans; Jay's old red, blue, and gold sweatshirt with a black tank top peeking out from the bottom of it; and a worn pair of black boots very similar to the ones Mal was wearing. Her hair was held back from her face by a blue headband, and you could see the small diamond hoop earrings Jay had given her for her fifteenth birthday. Jay gave her a victory smirk as he noticed the ring on her left hand.

"He's sleeping for now, but he won't be out for long. I am going to go in search of food, so you three try to keep yourselves out of too much trouble. I'll see you soon.", she told them, and the girls nodded while Jay pulled Rose towards him.

"I love you, Princess.", he told her.

"I love you, too.", she replied before he gave her a short but sweet kiss.

Then, Rose ducked out of the window and was off. When she came back an hour later, the good mood she had left the others in had vanished. Naturally, because of her link with her twin, Rose blamed this on Ben.

"Is my brother's decree that bad?", she asked them, and all but Jay looked shocked by her words.

"How did you know?", Evie asked, obviously surprised.

"I was never able to go to school, so I used my powers to enhance my natural bond with my brother. Anything he knows, I know. Now, how bad is it?", Rose told them all, and a chorus of groans met her ears.

"She's doesn't want me to-She said I need to find and marry a prince-He wants to keep me here to restock the shelves-I've been told to try to set her free!", the four tried to talk at once.

"Okay, not everybody at once. Mally, what's up?", Rose asked her best female friend as she sat down on her own bed beside Jay.

"My mother wants us to steal Fairy Godmother's wand and find a way to bring down the barrier in order to set them free and help them take Auradon.", Mal answered.

"I can keep you safe if you chose not to do that.", Rose promised before turning to her other female friend.

" _My_ mother told me I need to go so I can find a prince with money and a castle with a mother-in-law wing. I'd personally rather have a library.", Evie stated, and Rose nodded in agreement.

"I understand, trust me. I still have some memories of my mom's library, and it was amazing. Papa gave it to her as a gift when they first started getting along; he always said that was what made her fall in love with him. Again, I can protect you.", she told the blue-haired girl.

" _My_ mother doesn't want her little servant to go away. She'd have to touch up her own roots then.", Carlos hissed, and Rose's eyes narrowed.

"You're going to Auradon Prep, and you will stay with my family when school isn't in session. I said I'd do anything to protect you, little brother, and I meant every word.", she said calmly, but they could all see the fire in her eyes.

"My dad just wants me to stay to stock the shelves. He'll have to figure that out without me, because I'm not staying here.", Jay said as he wrapped his arm around Rose's shoulders.

"Good. Ben told me, as best he could considering he doesn't really know how to work the bond to his benefit, that he wanted me to come home and included me in his test group. Guys, no one has enough power to be a match for me; I can keep you all safe. Now, as I was a bit late coming back after Ben's mind-message, I say it's time for brunch.", she said as she opened the basket that was sitting on her lap.

 **A/N: I hope you enjoyed this, I will try to update soon, and please write a review and hit that nifty little submit button!**


	3. High School Never Ends

**A/N: If you are reading this, then you have obviously watched Disney's** _ **Descendants**_ **. The continuity errors aside, I enjoyed the movie. When this idea first struck me, moments after the movie ended, I knew I had to start writing it down. I hope you enjoy this! Read & Review, please.**

 **P.S., I am not meaning to bash/villainize any Disney hero or heroine. I will preface this story by saying that Belle and Beast/Adam are my favorite Disney royals and always have been. Enjoy!**

High School Never Ends

A month later, it was time for the quintet to leave the Isle of the Lost. Maleficent and her cohorts were still fighting with each other over whether or not their children would be going to Auradon Prep. What the four did not know, amongst other things, was that the decision had already been made for them. The whole time they fought, the five were busy packing. Well, Mal and Evie were packing on their own, while Rose supervised Jay and Carlos packing. Everything she owned had been packed up the night before.

"Are you two going to tell Ben you're together, or does he already know?", Rose heard Carlos asked, and she smiled to herself.

"He knows. When I found out he started dating Princess Audrey, I told him for the sheer purpose of letting him see how upset I was. Unlike me, however, Ben got over his anger. He's actually agreed to try to help the two of us convince my parents that we really do love each other.", she answered, and Carlos grinned.

"I think Jay will be an excellent prince.", he said simply, and Jay's face was suddenly turning a light pink color.

"I do, too, little brother.", Rose responded as Mal and Evie walked in.

"Are we ready to go?", Evie asked, and the boys nodded.

"You guys go ahead and get downstairs. I've just got to get something from my room before we leave.", Rose said, and she was gone before even Jay could protest.

When the limo from Auradon pulled up to The Bargain Castle, Jafar and two of his female companions were standing outside with their children. Maleficent looked impatient, which she was, and Grimhilde was truly the Evil Queen to her daughter as she berated her on her appearance again. Cruella and Carlos were nowhere to be seen.

"I don't want any more restrictions placed on the Isle because that prissy little flower can't show up on time! Where is this girl?", Maleficent snapped, and Mal paled.

"She said she'd be here, Mom!", Mal got out quickly.

"How can you trust her to be honest with you?", Maleficent was quick to ask, but Mal only sighed in relief as Rose walked up beside her.

"We have an understanding.", Rose said simply, and her voice attracted the attention of the others.

Grimhilde whispered something to Evie. The blue haired girl smirked before nodding. Maleficent almost imperceptibly flinched as her green eyes detected Rose's magical, pink aura. Mal hid her amusement at this well. Jafar's eyes locked onto the familiar cobra pendant around the Princess's neck, and Jay stepped in between them.

"That necklace does not belong to you, young lady. I'd like it back.", Jafar said to Rose, but his son stared him down.

"It does belong to her. _I_ stole it back from Medusa the night Mom died, and _I_ gave it to Rose as a birthday present six years ago.", Jay said as Mal, Rose, and Evie handed the limo driver their bags before getting in the car.

"We will talk about this when you come home. Bring me back something good for the store!", Jafar told his only child, and Jay nodded, not bothering to tell his father that he would never be coming home.

"Get back here!", everyone heard Cruella yell as Carlos darted passed them.

The fourteen year old briefly handed his bag over to the limo driver before diving into the car. Jay nodded to his father once more before following the others' example. As soon as the limo door closed behind him, all five let out sighs of relief.

"Could you have cut it any closer, Sissy?", Mal asked with a roll of her eyes.

"Probably; I left my dream analyzation book out last night to decipher your dream some more, and I forgot to pack it. It's in my purse.", Rose said as she leaned forward to grab a handful of gummy worms.

"What is this stuff?", Carlos asked, and she giggled.

"It's just candy. It's not like the candy here, but it's still good; it's actually probably better. Here, have a lollipop, Carlos.", Rose explained as she handed the stick of sugariness to the unsure boy.

After hearing that the bar before them was candy, the other three rushed to grab something to eat. Mal grabbed her own lollipop, Evie snatched up a handful of chocolates, and Jay took a small bit of everything. In the midst of all of this, Mal hit the button to bring down the barrier between the five and the driver. Evie looked out the windshield and gasped.

"Look!", she cried out, and the other four turned.

"It's a trap!", Carlos yelled, and it looked as if the car was going to plunge into the bay below.

But the car did no plunging. Instead, a golden bridge appeared as the car glided smoothly across to the mainland. Mal looked down at the button in her hand and blinked.

"Did this open the barrier?", she whispered to Rose, and the brunette girl merely shook her head.

"If I remember correctly, though I was three at the time, the barrier button is gold. It's one of my father's signature colors.", she told her best friend as Carlos and Jay started arguing about something behind the girls.

"Oh. Are you excited to be going home?", Mal asked with a genuine smile.

"A little- okay, I lied! I am very excited to be going home. It'll be amazing to see my brother and parents in person for the first time in thirteen years!", Rose said excitedly before all three girls turned towards the boys.

"Seriously?", Evie asked the squabbling pair with a roll of her eyes.

"What are you two fighting about?", Rose asked them, her happy expression vanishing in half-a-second.

"Carlos tried to take my sweatshirt!", Jay stated.

"Jay tried to sit on me! So, I grabbed his sweatshirt to push him off of me and to the floor.", Carlos added, and Rose sighed.

"But then you continued to tug on it!", Jay countered.

"I don't care who did what at this point. This is mine now, okay? Now both of you stop fighting. You're making me sound like my grandmother!", Rose told the boys as she pulled on Jay's sweatshirt over her royal blue tank top.

"You're grandmother?", Evie asked with a curious smile.

"She was my father's au pair, but she met my mother's father around the time my parents met, and they sort of just fell in love. I can still remember her breaking up fights between my father's majordomo, Cogsworth, and our Maître'd, Lumière. Those two would fight over the stupidest things, but Gran always set them straight. If what I learned from Ben was right, nothing's changed between them over the last thirteen years. Oh, look, we're here!", Rose said excitedly as the limo pulled up to the school

It looked as if the entire school had shown up to greet them. There were kids with banners of welcome. There was even a marching band. Everything was over the top, and Rose could only imagine one person who would do this.

"This has got to be Audrey's doing!", she groaned as the car stopped.

"Don't worry about her, Princess. She isn't worth you being stressed over.", Jay told her as the driver opened the door.

"Thanks; now, who's ready to face the world of goodness and light?", Rose asked her friends, and they exited the limo one by one.

Rose held onto Jay's hand as she saw the Fairy Godmother, Audrey, and Ben standing out in front of the welcoming party. Ben was grinning like a fool, but Audrey's smile was clearly causing the princess great pain. Rose could feel through their bond that it was severely irritating Ben that he could not see his sister, as she was nearly hiding behind Jay. She waited until he started speaking before moving closer.

"It's so good to finally meet you all. I'm Ben.", the prince said, still trying to look around his sister's boyfriend to catch a glimpse of Rose.

"Prince Benjamin, soon to be King!", Audrey squealed.

"Oh, shut your mouth, Audrey. No one here cares about that, and we all know who he is!", Rose snapped before she could stop herself, and Ben smiled.

"Who do you think you are to say that to me?", Audrey snapped coldly, not realizing who Rose was.

"Me? I'm probably your worst nightmares come to life. Hey, stranger!", she told the daughter of Sleeping Beauty before finally facing her brother.

"Welcome home, little sister!", Ben said excitedly before pulling his twin into an air-tight hug.

"It's good to be home, big brother!", Rose replied with a giggle just as Ben released her.

"R-R-R-Rose?", Audrey stammered out.

"Yes, Audrey?", Rose answered sarcastically before turning back to her brother and friends at one time. "Ben, I would like you to meet Carlos, Evie, Mal…, and Jay."

When Ben locked eyes with Mal, Rose felt torn between being overjoyed and sick. Ben had realized Mal had been the girl in a dream he had had, and the images in his mind went unfiltered straight into Rose's. She saw Ben on the Isle with Mal, and the feeling of being in love was all around them. But she could feel how conflicted Ben was about his feelings, how, while he did not love Audrey, he did not want to break her heart. Rose was sure this also meant that Ben had been the boy in Mal's dream. At least she would get along with her future sister-in-law if this was the case.

"Rosie, are you okay?", she heard Carlos ask her.

"Yeah, I'm fine, Carlos. I'll tell you all about it later on, I promise. It's just what Ben was thinking about.", she whispered as a quick reply.

"Well, why don't we begin the tour?", Ben asked, trying to stop any further damage from occurring.

The seven bid goodbye to Fairy Godmother before making their way through the gardens. They stopped at a statue of King Adam, and Ben clapped. The statue morphed into the Beast, and Carlos screamed and jumped into Jay's arms.

"Carlos, sweetie, it's alright. It's just a magical statue. I told you about things like that, remember?", Rose said to her surrogate brother as Jay set him gently on the ground.

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean I wasn't freaked out by that for a second. A little warning the next time you do something like that, please?", Carlos said to the twins, and both chuckled.

"That seems fair, Carlos. I'm sorry about that, but my father wanted his statue to morph from Beast to Man to remind us that anything is possible.", Ben told him, and only Audrey seemed put off by how he treated Carlos as his equal.

"Does he shed much?", Mal asked with a grin.

"Yeah, Mom won't let him on the couch. Hey, I was going to say that!", the twins said together, and all but Audrey laughed.

"The silent conversations are weird enough, Princess.", Jay told Rose with a laugh, and she just rolled her eyes before pecking his cheek.

Next, they wandered inside the castle. Audrey was latched onto Ben as if she could not let go, and Rose was enjoying how uncomfortable Ben was feeling. She warned him, did she not?

"Do you have magic here in Auradon? Like, wands and stuff?", Mal asked as casually as she could, and Ben looked over at his twin.

"We do, I mean, it exists. But most of it, it's been retired. Most of us are just regular mortals.", he said as Rose stuck her tongue out at him.

"Oh, you're just jealous, Ben! My awesomeness far exceeds your own!", she giggled at him, and he gave her a smile.

"Right, you guys are all mortals who just happen to be kings and queens.", Mal added as she refrained from laughing at her best friend.

"That's right! Our royal bloodlines go back hundreds of years!", Audrey said in a very perky tone.

"Of course, more than one royal was a commoner prior to taking the throne.", Jay was quick to point out, and everyone other than Audrey seemed to realize he was referring to Queen Belle.

"That is very true, Jay. Remind me to introduce you to Sultan Aladdin of Agrabah and King Eugene of Corona; I think you'd all get along well. Hey, Doug! Doug, come down here!", Ben called to his dwarven friend after siding with Jay, much to Audrey's displeasure.

"Hello.", the boy in the band uniform said as he approached the group.

"This is Doug, and he's going to help you four with your schedules while I take Rose to see our parents. Actually, I'll handle your schedule, Jay. You should probably come with us. Anyway, I'll see the rest of you later, and if there's anything you need at all, just ask.", Ben said, and he then proceeded to move from the room, motioning for Rose and Jay to follow him.

Audrey was still hanging on to Ben's arm as they made their way to Belle and Adam's private quarters, but Ben removed her arm from his when they stopped in front of the door. Audrey looked confused, and Jay and Rose had to use all of their self-control to not outright laugh at the perturbed princess.

"Sorry, Audrey, but this is a family matter.", Ben told her gently.

"Then why is he here?", she asked, gesturing towards Jay.

"He's been Rose's boyfriend for three years, and I happen to think it's high time he met his girlfriend's family. Now, I'll see you later, Audrey.", Ben was a bit firmer this time, but his girlfriend still huffed before nodding and walking away.

"You had to tell her that he's my boyfriend?", Rose asked with a sigh.

"I didn't tell her that the two of you are engaged, did I?", Ben replied with a roll of his eyes.

"At least there's that!", Rose said as her brother knocked on the door.

"Come in!", a light, familiar, and comforting voice called out to them, and Ben led them inside.

"Mom, Dad, I've brought some people I think you need to see.", he said, and Belle and Adam both looked up from their respective desks to see who was there.

"Rose?", Belle asked, tears in her eyes.

"Mama!", Rose exclaimed, dropping Jay's hand and rushing into her mother's waiting arms.

"Rose-petal?", a strong and equally comforting voice asked, and Rose left her mother's arms at one, practically throwing herself into her father's strong arms.

"Papa!", she cried out, her own tears of happiness falling rapidly as Adam held her close to his chest and repeatedly kissed the top of her head.

A few minutes passed before anyone else spoke, and no one said anything about the tears streaming down King Adam's face as he held close the daughter that he had not seen for thirteen years. Finally, Adam released his hold on Rose and turned back to Ben. Said prince was having a hushed conversation/quietly boosting the confidence of Jay.

"And who might this lad be, Ben?", Adam asked his son, but it was his daughter who answered.

"Mama, Papa, this is Jayden Nagendra, son of Jafar.", Rose said softly, moving back over towards Jay and taking his hand in her own.

"So you two know each other from the Isle then?", Belle asked, as she handed her husband her handkerchief.

"You could say that. We've been best friends since we were ten, and Jay's been my boyfriend since we were thirteen.", Rose added, and both of her parents froze in shock; their little princess was dating a villain kid?

"Just remember, Rose could have done a lot worse, Mom, Dad. He could be Gaston's son, misogynistic views and all.", Ben offered up as support for his sister's case.

"Your Majesties, I know I'm nowhere near what either of you or your son might even consider as being good enough for your daughter, and I won't delude myself into thinking that I ever will be; but, if I know anything for certain at all, it's that I love Rose more than anything or anyone in the world. As much as I was all for coming to school here to get away from my father and his desires to turn me into a lowlife thief, I was worried about coming here and seeing any of these so-called 'good' princesses bully Rose because of where she grew up. I can't stand it when she's hurt, which is how I know I will never hurt her. I love her so much that it hurts me to see her upset about anything. Even this morning, I stepped between Rose and my own father when he tried to take the pendant from around her neck. She always gets so upset whenever anyone tried to take that necklace.", Jay said the last part mostly to himself, but his words did have an effect on Adam and Belle.

"We'll see how you progress in your Remedial Goodness 101 class, Jay, and then we'll talk about this again.", Belle said sweetly, and Adam nodded, not trusting himself to speak without putting his foot in his mouth like he did so frequently.

"Thank you, Your Majesties. A chance is all I ask for.", Jay said quietly, and Rose was practically beaming.

"I told you not to worry so much!", she chirped before placing a kiss on his cheek.

"As did I. Now, c'mon, Jay, I'll show you to your dorm.", Ben added, clapping his new found friend on the shoulder.

"Rose, I'll show you to your room!", Belle said excitedly, taking her daughter's hand in her own and following the two boys from the room.

"I'll see you at dinner, darling. I need to see your father for a bit.", Adam said to Belle before walking in the opposite direction of the other four.

Belle and Rose walked down the hall in complete silence until coming to a stop in front of a large, oak door with an enormous pink rose pained on it. It was the same room she had lived in as a toddler. Rose turned to her mother, a surprised look on her face.

"Mama, I still have the same room?", she asked.

"Of course you do, sweetheart. Your father and I planned for you to only stay on the Isle until you were old enough to control your powers, and then we planned on bringing you home. But, when the driver abandoned you, we had no way to determine where you went. Until Ben told us he had a way to tell you we wanted you home, your father and I thought we'd lost you forever. Come on inside, and we can talk for a little while. There's so much more for us to talk about after all.", Belle said, leading her daughter through the large doors.

Thirteen years ago, the room was covered in a little girl's toys and had a toddler bed with bumpers on it across from the door to the balcony. Now, the toys were gone, the toddler bed had been replaced with a large, queen-sized bed, and there was a desk against the wall opposite the large walk-in-closet. It was just plain enough for Rose to put her mark on it.

"Mama, it's wonderful!", she exclaimed, and Belle let out a laugh.

"I would hope so. Your brother told me how you described your room on the Isle to him, so I used that as my inspiration. So, tell me, what's Jay like?", Belle replied as she did her best to get to the story she really wanted to find out about.

"He's amazing, Mama! When we met, on my tenth birthday, he did everything in his power to try to take the blame for the storm I caused by getting upset. Mal, who is now my best female friend, was actually my biggest bully back then. She tried stealing this necklace from me when we were thirteen. Jay stopped her, told her that the necklace had been his mother's before he gave it to me, and he got it to the point where Mal knew not to mess with me again. That was the same day he first asked me to be his girlfriend. A few weeks after that, he turned the second attic at The Bargain Castle into a room for me because he knew I wasn't all that safe outside. And this morning, Jafar tried to take the necklace from me, but Jay got in between us and told his father that he had given me the necklace as a birthday gift when we were ten.", Rose said, and Belle smiled.

"It seems like Jay has done everything he could to keep you happy, safe, and loved while you were on that island. For the son of such a horrible villain, he really is a nice young man it seems.", Belle told her daughter with a genuine smile.

"I'm glad you think so, Mama, because I really want you and Papa to like him. You see, before Ben had this idea, Jay and I talked. Not anytime soon, but in a few years from now, once we're adults, we want to get married. This ring is a promise of that, a promise that we're it for each other. The thought finally struck me earlier when Ben mentioned introducing Jay to Sultan Aladdin, but Jay is a lot like his father's mortal enemy. When we were ten and decided to go running across rooftops, he asked me if I trusted him right before we jumped. I knew it sounded familiar, but I couldn't place it until Ben said the Sultan's name earlier. Jay is a lot like him; he may be a street rat, but he has the heart of a prince. Mama, I love him. I love him, and I hope to one day marry him. You don't hate me for that, do you?", Rose finally told her mother the one thing she was most worried about, but Belle only grinned wider.

"Rose, you're talking to the woman who fell in love with a fur-covered monster with a heart of gold. As long as he doesn't hurt you or do anything evil, I'm completely okay with this. Well, I'll be okay with this as long as you don't get married until you're at least twenty-one. That _might_ give your father time to come around to the idea of you and Jay being together. Men can be so stubborn sometimes.", her mother's words did actually soothe Rose, and the two embraced each other before falling into a fit of giggles.

When the two calmed down, Rose asked her mother the question she knew she needed to ask early on.

"Mama, you wouldn't send a kid back to an abusive home, would you?", she asked quietly, taking deep breaths.

"Of course not! No child deserves that! Why would you ask me that?", Belle replied, the worry clear on her face.

"Carlos de Vil, he's like my little brother; Cruella treats him like a slave. The only reason he had to out-run her to get into the limo today was because she didn't want to lose the one person she can force to scrape her bunions and color her roots. Carlos can't even have one conversation with her without Cruella making some absurd claim about dogs that he knows, because of me, are false; she won't even tell him how his father died. I promised him I would keep him safe, promised him I wouldn't let him go back there against his will.", Rose explained, and her mother's heart nearly broke.

"Is he the only one?", Belle asked, fearing the answer.

"No, unfortunately; Queen Grimhilde spends all day verbally abusing Evie, telling her that she isn't pretty enough, needs more makeup, will never attract a rich prince if she doesn't get her nose out of her books, her brain will make her unattractive, and anything else she can come up with. But, even so, Evie has the most book-smarts on the entire Isle. As for Mal, her mother was never meant to be a parent, if you want my personal opinion. All Maleficent ever does is tell Mal, her only child, that she will never be more powerful, more evil, or feared, or more respected than she is. She pressures Mal into stealing from people, vandalizing public and private property, and just flat out causing mayhem in order to live up to her, Maleficent's, expectations. The fact that Jay is more like Sultan Aladdin than Jafar should clue you in as to how his father treats him. The worst thing is probably Jay being told he is responsible for his mother's death because he wasn't home at the right time. It wasn't his fault that she traded Hades Jay's life for her own, and it wasn't his fault Hades decided to kill her rather than find Jay when Pain and Panic discovered that he wasn't home the night Hades decided to collect!", Rose answered her mother, getting angrier with each word she spoke, and the mother-daughter-duo jumped when a knock sounded on the door.

"Come in!", Belle called, and Ben entered the room with Jay, Mal, Evie, and Carlos close behind.

"Hey, Mom; we were coming to check on Rose.", Ben said, looking over at his scowling sister.

"Rosie, are you okay?", Carlos asked timidly, and the young princess knew it was her mother's presence that cause his tone.

"I'm fine, Carlos. I was just talking to my mom about some stuff that usually upsets me too much to even think about.", she told him, and the younger boy nodded in understanding.

"We got worried when we saw the clouds, thunder, and lighting come out of nowhere.", Evie added, and Rose sighed.

"I'm starting to doubt I'll ever get that under control!", Rose chuckled.

"You will; just believe in yourself a little more.", Mal said with a small smile, but she was still worried about her best friend regardless.

"I know, Mal, I know. Seriously, guys, I'm fine. Boys, you better be unpacked and studying by the time dinner rolls around. Evie, go finish organizing your makeup and clothes the way you like them. Ben, could you make sure your _girlfriend_ isn't already spreading rumors about the five of us yet?", Rose began giving out orders like she normally would, and all but Belle and Mal left the room; Belle was surprised to see how hesitant Jay was to leave, and how he and Rose managed to have an entire conversation with nothing more than their eyes, but he left just the same as the others.

"I take it that happens often.", Belle said with a giggle, and both girls nodded.

"Mama, you've met my boyfriend, so now I want you to meet my female best friend. Mal, this is my mom, Queen Belle of Auradon. Mama, this is my best friend, Mal D'Arcy.", Rose introduced the two, and Mal seemed to become less nervous once Belle gave her a warm smile.

"Hello, Mal. From what my daughter has told me, I'm sure you are the best friend she could ever have. While I've heard that the two of you didn't start out so great, I want to thank you for being there for her in the end.", Belle said to the fairy, and Mal blinked a fair few times before coming up with a reply.

"Honestly, Your Majesty, Rose is my best friend, too, and I _really_ don't want to know where I'd be if she wasn't around. All my life, I wanted a sister who I could turn to for advice and, maybe, look up to. It turned out that I was bullying her too long to notice that she was right in front of me the whole time. Rose was the first person to tell me I didn't have to be who my mother wanted me to be, the first person to actually believe in me, and the first person help me find a non-violent way to work out my frustrations. Without Rose, I would be on the verge of doing something completely horrible just to gain my mother's approval instead of contemplating if I should bake a carrot or caramel cake next time I'm alone in a kitchen.", Mal said to the Queen of Auradon, and Belle let out a giggle at her words.

"I am _so_ glad that boy finally saw sense, and I am equally glad, now, that he will chose you!", she said, confusing only the faerie-girl.

"You know? How?", Rose asked her mother eagerly.

"I could see the spark of something that clearly wasn't there before in Ben's eyes the moment he walked into the room. He kept looking over at Mal the whole time he was in here, and it was the same way your father looked at me when he was unsure of my feelings towards him after the library, but before his birthday.", Belle answered, and Mal was shocked; did Ben have a crush on her?

"I knew because they each had one or more dreams involving the other. Ben let it slip through the link when he saw her before the tour started, and Mal told me about her dream the morning of Ben's decree!", Rose told her mother, and the two began giggling once more.

"He…Ben- _Prince_ Ben, has a crush on me?", Mal finally stuttered out.

"Don't be silly, dear. He's in love with you. Ben is much like his father where love is concerned: he may date a girl to see if there's anything between them, but when he falls for someone, he falls fast and he falls hard. Right now, Ben just doesn't know how to break up with Audrey. They've known each other from the time they were toddlers, and he doesn't want to lose her as a friend. As soon as he figures it out, you can count on Ben asking you on a date.", Belle was quite frank in her explanation, and Mal was floored.

"I told you my mom was a relationship expert!", Rose said to Mal, and the two teens began giggling together.

"I don't know about a relationship expert, but I _am_ an expert on teenagers and on my boys. Speaking of my boys, Rose, your Uncle Chip should be home by Family Day next week. He is currently away at University, but he wouldn't miss your brother's coronation or your homecoming for the world.", Belle said to the girls, and Rose smiled fondly at the mention of her mother's younger step-brother.

"I can't wait to see him! How soon until I see Gran, Grandpa, Cogsworth, and Lumière?", she asked excitedly.

"The five of you are to join us for dinner this evening before we unleash the entire student body on you, so you will see them all soon.", Belle told the enchantress and the half-faerie, and Mal was shocked and relieved that her first day off the Isle of the Lost involved dinner with her best friend's parents who just so happened to be the King and Queen of Auradon.

"Mama, would it be alright if Mal and I walked around the rose garden for a bit? I know, thank to Ben, that you never let anyone in there without you, but please?", Rose asked her mother, and Belle nodded.

"I'll walk you there myself, if only to assure the guards that you _are_ allowed to be there. Then, I will need to rescue your father from whatever mess he's gotten himself into with your Gran and Grandpa. Shall we, girls?", she responded, and the three left Rose's bedchamber.

At the door leading out towards the rose garden, Belle called for the attention of her two stone-beast guards. They turned towards the Queen of Auradon and drew their stone spears on the two teenage girls with her. Belle cleared her throat, and the spears were retracted.

"Thank you, boys. The girl that looks just like me, but with my husband's eyes, is my daughter, Rose. She, and any friends of hers that _she_ introduces to you, are allowed in the garden whenever she chooses.", she told the statues, and the two girls gasped.

"Whenever I want, Mama?", Rose asked in amazement.

"Whenever you want, my flower. I want you kids to have someplace that you can just be yourselves without worrying about what the others, like Audrey, might say. I intend on giving Ben full access to the garden once he breaks up with her. But, that aside, I know what it's like to be seen as the outsider. Do you know how many years _after_ my wedding it was before I was invited to a Ladies' Luncheon with the other Queens? I was already pregnant when Cinderella and Rapunzel staged a coup against Aurora to get me my first invitation.", Belle replied, and the gasps increased.

"Queen Aurora refused to invite the Queen of the United States of Auradon to a luncheon? Your Majesty, would I be out of line if I said that I thought she sounds no better than my own mother in a social setting?", Mal could barely believe the words coming out of her own mouth as she said this.

"Surprisingly, no, Mal; oh, and I would like for you to call me by my given name from now on, okay? Given that my son works out his feelings, you'll be family someday. Even if he doesn't, I don't anticipate Rose allowing you to return to the Isle of the Lost unless you absolutely want to. We'll be seeing a lot of each other from here on out, so I think that would be appropriate.", Rose decided this was her turn to be shocked into silence, though a small squeal did manage to escape her lips.

"In that case, thank you, Belle, for…everything.", Mal said with more honesty in her voice than Rose knew she had.

"Have fun, girls! I'll send Gran to get you when dinner is ready.", Belle said with a playful smile gracing her lips before turning and walking in the direction of the kitchens.

The guards pulled their spears on Mal, and the girls chuckled. Rose calmed herself down before turning to them and clearing her throat just as her mother had. Mal thought it was nearly identical.

"Boys, this is my best friend, Mal; she's okay to let in.", and the spears retracted once more as the guards bowed the two girls into the garden.

Queen Belle's rose garden was far grander than Mal had been expecting. A large fountain, which prominently featured a cherub at the top, took up most of the middle of the garden; dirt pathways were woven in between the hundreds upon hundreds of rows of manicured rose bushes; a gazeebo was set up in both the North and South corners; a picnic area was in the West corner; and the large, open field they had entered into occupied the East corner. The roses seemed to be in any and every color possible; they were red, pink, yellow, white, purple, blue, black, and even a fiery orange color! The look of amazement in Mal's eyes made Rose suddenly realize that her best friend had never seen this much color at one time in her entire life.

"It's beautiful, Sissy! It smells so good out here, and I never knew that there were this many colors!", she heard Mal let out in a bought of giggles.

"I haven't been here since my third birthday, and not a single thing has changed! Well, I _say_ nothing's changed; but, I can sense eyes on us already. C'mon, we can go sit in the North Corner gazeebo. You can see the castle from there, but whoever decided to play spy won't be able to make out a single word we say.", Rose was giggling too, and the two girls made their way over to the structure.

Stepping into the gazeebo closest to the castle, Mal was quick to notice the cushioned benches and abundance of natural light that seemed to concentrate itself directly across from the steps, facing the garden. Rose sat down, her eyes towards the castle, and Mal followed her lead. After a moment or two, Mal noticed her best friend's far-away look and sad smile.

"Sissy, what's wrong?", she asked softly, not used to a melancholy enchantress.

"Chad Charming; he's who was watching us.", Rose answered solemnly.

"And that's a problem how?", Mal asked by way of reply.

"Really, it isn't. When we were kids, Chad was actually my friend; I hope he still thinks of me as his friend, but I don't want Jay getting upset or anything if Chad starts hanging out with us.", the enchantress admitted, but the half-faerie only laughed.

"Just talk to Jay about it. You _love_ , agreed to _marry_ , and _mean everything_ to Jay. He'll listen if you talk with him about Chad and assure him that he has nothing to worry about, trust me. I've seen the two of you accomplish quite a few things that should be impossible, after all.", Mal was quick to reassure her best friend, and Rose chuckled as she realized how silly she had sounded.

"You're right, Mals, if I'm crazy enough to agree to marry him, neither Jay nor I should have anything to worry about. Where did you get so wise?", she joked, and Mal rolled her eyes.

"I don't know, but I've been getting some pretty amazing advice from this brilliant enchantress for the last three years.", she joked back, and the two fell into a bought of giggling that lasted for several minutes until the both of them had fallen onto the gazeebo's wooden floor.

A few hours later, as the sun began to sink below the hedge-line, Mal and Rose's girl-time was ended by the appearance of a stout, older woman with a kind smile. Rose felt the happy-tears slip down her cheeks as she hurried over to the woman. Mal found herself smiling as it struck her that this woman must be Rose's grandmother.

"Gran!", Rose cried out as the old woman hugged her tight, confirming Mal's realization.

"It's so good to finally have you home, Rose! Is this one of your friends who joined us today?", the kind, old woman asked, though her eyes showed that she already knew the answer.

"Yes, Gran, this is Mal D'Arcy, my best friend. Mal, please allow me to introduce my grandmother, Elizabeth (Potts) Laroque.", Rose waited patiently as her grandmother assessed Mal.

"Belle was right! I can't wait until you're a part of our family, dear! Please, call me 'Gran,' if you're okay with that.", Elizabeth said, and Mal blushed; was everyone in the Devereux household aware that Ben was in love with her _but_ Ben?

"How does everyone know what's going on except Ben?", Mal asked upon finding her voice and losing her flushed cheeks.

"If I'm right, Jay should already know. Evie might know by the time dinner is served. Carlos won't know until someone says something. Knowing my mother, Grandpa knows; Lumière and Cogsworth should know on their own, as should Fifi.", Rose said as the trio walked back into the castle.

"Are you telling your friend about how everyone knows your brother is in love with her?", a new voice asked in a whisper just behind them, making Rose jump before turning to see a smirking young man about hers and Mal's age.

"Given the cheekbones and the cocky smirk, it's nice to see you, too, Chad. While we're talking about relationships here, how's your _real_ girlfriend?", she asked after taking a few minutes to study the young man's face.

"Exceedingly too good for me while being too hard on herself! You can tell?", he replied, and Rose chuckled.

"Son, we all can.", Elizabeth said gently, and Chad sighed.

"So you prefer faeries to princesses?", Mal said in a whisper, a vision of an awkward, but sweet, girl flittering through her mind.

"She is far more than _just_ a faerie, and her roommate is more than likely the strongest warrior our age. She's managed learned a few things from said roommate over the years, meaning that I know my girlfriend is fully capable of kicking my a- _butt_ -from here all the way back to Charmington. Sorry, Gran!", Chad said, quickly admonishing himself and apologizing to his surrogate grandmother.

"Just don't do it again, Chad. Oh, Belle asked me to invite you and that girl of yours along to dinner this evening. She believes that the more friends these five have tomorrow morning, the better.", Mal noticed how Chad smiled as he nodded in agreement with Elizabeth's words before excusing himself to find his mystery-girlfriend.

"How long has Chad called you 'Gran'?", Rose asked her grandmother, giggling.

"As he has been your brother's best friend for ten years, it's been from about the time he was twelve.", Elizabeth told the girl-enchantress as they set of for the Royal Family's private quarters in the once-forbidden West Wing.

Dinner had started off rather smoothly; Rose had been passed around to the family members who had yet to see her, and she introduced her friends and boyfriend to everyone before the meal had even been placed on the table. Chad had yet to appear with his girlfriend, and Ben had been suspiciously absent as well. It was when Belle insisted that they wait for Ben, Chad, and the mystery girl before eating that Rose got up from her chair and hurried from the room.

"MAL!", she cried over her shoulder, but there was a light laugh in her voice as she did so.

Mal, in slight confusion, hurried after her best friend without hesitation. With one look around the table at each other, the entire group rushed out after the two giggling girls. They skidded to a stop behind the girls, who were having a quiet, yet furious conversation with Ben and Chad outside one of the girls' dorm rooms. Jay snapped his fingers, and the others realized that Mal, Ben, Chad, and Rose were no longer able to see them.

"What's going on? What did you do?", Evie asked, and Jay smirked.

"The last wish my father made before being defeated was to be a genie. You didn't think that the barrier somehow expunged the magic from him, did you? Plus, he was also a sorcerer. I know both magic and spell-work probably about as well as the two of them, though it's mainly just theory.", he told her, but his words only brought on confusion.

"How, considering the barrier is supposed to block magic?", Carlos asked, and everyone seemed to want to know the answer, too.

"The barrier was meant to stop the known magic from known villains. My father's magic is limited, part of being a genie bound to a lamp he can't find; but, not that he ever knew, mine isn't. In fact, most kids on the Isle who have parents with magic don't even know that they might have magic within them at all.", Jay's answer was not what anyone present had been expecting.

"So, you're telling me that the barrier is coded?", Carlos asked another question.

"Sort of. Basically, Maleficent couldn't use her normal green-flame technique and vanish off the island no matter how hard she tried; any potions or spells that the Evil Queen tried to disguise herself with would be useless; even if he actually wanted to, the "Great" Jafar couldn't return to his lamp to escape the Isle of the Lost; and, for those like Cruella de Vil, it keeps normal humans locked away inside the barrier. But for people like Rose, Mal, and me, none of that's an issue. One, the barrier has little effect on Rose in the first place. Two, even if you inherit your magic directly from a particular parent, your magical signature is unique to you. As an example, just because Mal can make her eyes flash green like her mother can doesn't mean her magic is the same type as Maleficent's; Maleficent has pure faerie magic from the Moors, but Mal is half-human. Her emotions play into her magic in a way that Maleficent's don't because of that.", Jay explained, and Belle and Adam turned to look at one another in surprise.

"Mal is only half-faerie?", Belle asked in a soft, gentle voice, her suspicions about the young girl confirmed.

"She doesn't usually like to talk about it, to be honest. Mal's father knew of her existence from the time Maleficent realized she was pregnant, but he left her to grow up in a place as dangerous as the Isle of the Lost for the sake of his reputation.", Evie spat the words out like they were one of her mother's poison apples.

"Her father wasn't someone sent to the Isle?", Adam added his own question, a question that most of his staff/surrogate family also seemed interested in.

"We would have expected you to know because of Fairy Godmother having a daughter, but were any of you aware that faerie pregnancies last twenty-four months as compared to nine for humans?", Carlos finally got to be the one to answer, and, aside from Belle, everyone not from the Isle of the Lost shook his or her head to show a negative response.

"Maleficent got pregnant three months before all of the villains were sent to the Isle of the Lost, and Mal's father knew. He's pretty much on his deathbed now, but Mal can't bring herself to forgive him and hates the mere mention of him because of what he did.", Evie spoke quietly, but her tone was pure spite.

Belle and Adam wanted to ask more questions about the purple-haired girl who held the affection of their children, though in different ways, but Jay was already making them visible once more with another snap of his fingers. Instead, they watched as the four teens entered the room, only to exit it no more than five minutes with a third teenage girl walking beside Chad. This girl, Belle could plainly see, had a kind face and eyes that hid an insecure young woman yearning for acceptance.

"I think we can all head back to dinner now.", Rose said upon seeing her family standing there.

"We only followed because we were worried, Princess.", Jay said softly to her as they walked behind everyone else, each with an arm around the other's waist.

"I know, but Ben and Chad needed help. The girl who was with us, that's Jane Bellamy, daughter of the Fairy Godmother. As is the norm with faeries, her mother has constantly told her that looks shouldn't matter and vanity gets people absolutely nowhere. Jane, being surrounded by the most beautiful and _spoiled_ princesses to ever walk the Earth, has a load of self-esteem issues the size of the _Jolly Roger_. The only reason people don't know she's seeing Chad is because she doesn't want everyone badgering him with questions as to why he would chose her over any of the available princesses; it was her idea for him to make himself out to be such a player just to throw any suspicion off of them being together. Also, Jane is filled to the brim with magical potential; but, her mother won't train her to use her powers out of fear that Jane will just use them for vain purposes.", Jay felt he understood exactly what Rose was trying to tell him without outright stating it.

"You offered to train her, didn't you?", he asked, not needing to turn his head to see his girlfriend nodding.

"She's ready, Jay, far more than I ever was. But, because of her age, she's scared of not being in control. Hormones from puberty added on to peer pressure probably isn't helping her with that. Jane needs to be in control before her magic starts manifesting itself. I know better than anyone what unintentional bursts of uncontrolled magic can do; you know that I know.", Rose said, stopping short of entering her family's private dining room.

"It wasn't your fault, Rose, not in the slightest. Your best friend-no-your _sister_ was locked in her room, screaming in pain, for three days, and you had no way to help her without putting her in more danger. When you finally had her back, _you_ treated her scratches, bruises, and broken bones; you did the same for Carlos and Evie, your other siblings; and you went above and beyond for me, so I would have been more worried if you hadn't had nightmares. So, no, _this_ is not your fault.", Jay spoke softly, but sternly, as he turned her to face him and placed Rose's hand over the spot where only the two of them knew a thin, white scar across his collar bone was hidden.

"I almost killed you, and yet you stayed by my side. I barely stopped you from bleeding out right there on the bed, but you just went back to sleep as soon as it was over with your arms around me all night. You nearly lost your life because I had a nightmare, but you still make time to tell me that you love me every day. Why?", she asked, and neither teen noticed Ben, Belle, and Adam leaning against the doorframe.

"I did all of that, and would do it again, _because_ I love you. I love _all_ of you, Rose Belle Devereux, Princess of Auradon and Supreme Enchantress, not just parts of you. I wouldn't have given you the ring if I didn't.", he answered her, and Adam just turned to look at his wife and son, both of whom started to drag him back into the dining room.

"I think my dad just found out about the engagement.", Rose whispered with a smile playing at her lips.

"Based on her reaction, you told your mom earlier; I know Ben knew, because he asked if I planned on choosing Carlos as my best man. I told him no, because Carlos vehemently refused. He hates making any sort of public speech, and he said he wouldn't want to be the one who had to walk back up the aisle with Mal. Good thing Ben was who I intended to ask from the start, huh?", Jay chuckled before the young couple made their way back into the dining room.

Over dinner, Adam's wife and children informed him of the long-term engagement between Rose and Jay. He was far more supportive than Belle had initially told Rose he would be, but Adam also seemed to want to steer the conversation in a particular direction. The conversation just outside the dining room door that he had overheard between his daughter and his future son-in-law had worried him.

"From what I've heard from your own mouths, the two of you love each other very much; who am I to get in the way of that? Just know, Jay, that hurting Rose will be the last thing you do for several reasons.", he said, eager to move on.

"Of course, Sir, though I am more scared of Rose than of you. I've seen her go up against people who've hurt any of us, and I would hate to be one of them at this point. I find being able to breathe to be rather enjoyable.", Jay said firmly, half-ignoring the playful slap on the shoulder he received from his girlfriend.

"I have never killed anybody! What happens to them after I curse them is not my fault, and my curses are meant to teach them a lesson. If they chose not to learn the lesson, it's not my fault, either. It's not like I put time constraints on them like were on Papa!", Rose insisted.

"Did you curse Billy Hook within an inch of his life, sis?", Ben asked coolly, and Mal visibly flinched at the name.

"I did, but it was Maleficent that did the most damage to him. If you've figured out what the rest of us already know, are you prepared to deal with his actions and their consequences?", she replied in an equally cool tone.

"Would the two of you like to explain?", Adam asked in a tone that said, in no uncertain terms, that he was not actually asking a question.

"It's my fault. If I'd have just been stronger, it never would have happened.", it was Mal's quiet voice that clued everyone else, even Evie and Carlos, in to what had happened to the son of Captain James Hook.

"No, it's not. Mal, he had no right to stalk you and toss you around like a ragdoll when your guard was down.", that comment came, surprisingly yet not, from Ben.

"You know _everything_?", the purple-haired faerie asked in barely a whisper, her voice so low that Ben might not have heard her if she hadn't been sitting between Rose and himself.

"I didn't know any faces other than Jay's and Rose's own before today, but I knew the names of all four of my sister's closest friends years ago. Just like I would tell her about Chad and our other friends, Rose would tell me about you guys. When she told me what he did, who hired him to do that, and how bad off you were that entire week, I almost demanded you all of the Isle two years ago. No one should be forced to go through that, Mal, no one.", Ben, without needing to be told, realized what his sister meant; he had fallen in love with the purple-haired young woman when he saw her in his dreams, and his love only increased as she sat beside him at dinner with a look of pure fright on her face; did Mal think that he wouldn't love her anymore if he knew what had happened to her?

Now, with her sitting beside him at dinner, blaming herself for an attack she was not to blame for in the least, Ben was certain that Mal was his true love. He could feel his genetic magic sparking in a way it never had with Audrey. He just hoped that Mal felt the same way.

"He's absolutely right, Mally. I've told you from the day I got you safely to your room, none of this is your fault.", Rose said to her best friend before turning to her parents and family members. "Two years ago, a week before Ben and I turned fourteen, Mal went out to find a birthday present for me. She was on her way home when Captain Hook's son, William (or Billy) attacked her in an alleyway. It wasn't a… _sexual_ attack, just a savage beating. By the time Jay and I found her and I checked her over, Mal was bleeding in several places, had bruises up and down her body, and ended up having multiple broken bones. When she was healthy enough to tell us who did it, I tracked him down. The idiot told me he only did it for the money, no other reason. So, I cursed him to learn what it means to have nothing, to learn what things are really worth. He managed to tell me who hired him, a fact that shouldn't have honestly surprised me, before I left."

"W-w-who hired him? Tell me, or I might just go insane!", Evie was shaking, her rage was so evident.

"It was my mother.", Mal whispered, though everyone heard her.

The room was silent. The knowledge that a mother, even Maleficent, could pay someone to savagely beat her only daughter was beyond comprehension for most of the room's inhabitants. Jane silently promised herself that she was going to march straight to her mother's office after dinner and tell her just how lucky she was to be the daughter of Esme Bellamy, the Fairy Godmother. Chad knew he had to call his own mother as soon as was humanly possible; Chad needed to make sure Queen Cinderella Charming knew her son loved her and was glad she was his mother.

"Your mother _paid_ to have you nearly beaten to death? I always knew she was a bitch, considering she put my mother and me under house arrest for six years, but that's a new low, even for her.", Evie spat, breaking the silence, and Carlos was no better upon finding his own voice.

"She didn't want to do it herself this time? She seemed to enjoy it so much just before you turned thirteen!", he seethed.

"She claimed she needed to test me against someone I stood a chance against. Like I said, if I'd have been stronger, we wouldn't be having this discussion.", Mal said as the tears started to fall, and Ben threw caution to the winds and put an arm around Mal's slim figure, letting her cry on his broad shoulder.

"Mal, you stood no chance to begin with. Billy is twice your size, both height and weight. Your mother knows that, and she also 'knows' that you have no access to your magic outside of making your eyes flash green. When she nearly killed you herself, it was because your mother told you not to take charity from people once you told her that my father and I were offering the two of you someplace to stay. Mal, you and Evie are the closest things I have to sisters, and I won't let you delude yourself into thinking you're supposed to be a one-woman army.", Jay sounded more mature than anyone other than Rose and Carlos could have expected, but his words achieved the desired effect.

"Rose, why didn't you tell me it was this bad? When we talked earlier, you made it seem as if it was verbal abuse, but this crosses that line. None of you are going back to those people who claim to be your parents if they treat you like this. All four of you can stay with us for as long as necessary, and you can forget all about whatever scheme your parents put you up to in the hopes of breaking them out. If they didn't deserve to be there before, they do now!", Belle snapped, and everyone paused for a moment to take in what they were seeing; it was not an angry queen who had spoken, but a furious and heartbroken mother.

"How did you know there was a scheme at all?", Rose asked, merely to satisfy her own curiosity.

"It was the looks of nervousness and apprehension on three of your faces in Rose's room earlier. It's the same look Ben used to get when he would sneak down to the kitchens and eat some of his Gran's chocolate chip cookies before dinner. Incidentally, it was the same look Adam had when every time he looked at me the entire week leading up to him actually proposing.", Belle said simply, but her husband began to chuckle at her words.

"It was also the look on your face every time you would look at me leading up to you surprising me with the fact that we were going to be parents.", he countered, and Belle shook her head, rolled her eyes, and smiled.

"What Mom and Dad are trying to say is that, to a trained professional or a parent, you gave yourselves away when you realized that the people who would be done the most harm by your parents gaining their freedom would be the people Rose cares most about, yourselves included.", Ben said, not even caring that Mal had managed to cry herself to sleep on him.

Hours before sunrise, Mal woke up in a mild panic; her sleep had been ruined by a nightmare in which she had to return to her mother without the wand and was once more beaten to the point of death. Once she had mostly calmed herself down, Mal looked around, only to find herself in a bedroom that she knew was not her dorm. The walls were a royal blue color, and the room was accented with gold. Looking around, Mal's eyes landed on the sleeping figure on the chaise lounge; it was Ben, and he began to stir around the time Mal had woken.

"Mal, are you alright?", he asked as he sat up and stretched.

"I-I-I think I am. Where am I? What happened?", she asked, drawing her knees to her chest and wrapping her arms around them.

"We're in my room. You fell asleep on my shoulder, and we all thought it best if no one saw me carrying you back to your dorm lest the rumors start before I even properly break up with Audrey. Originally, you were going to spend the night in Rose's room and her in yours with Evie, but my sister refused. She said you have nightmares sometimes and not to leave you alone all night. So, what happened? You look plain terrified.", Ben replied as he moved across the room to sit next to Mal on the large bed.

"I don't think I would be able to tell you. Maybe, I could show you?", the faerie asked, creating a small swirl of green magic with a wave of her hand.

"Show me, Mal, it's okay.", Ben assured her, and she took his hand in hers before sending some of her magic and her nightmare to him.

Ben shuddered as the misty green fog Mal's magic had created faded from his sight; the vision she showed him was nothing short of horrible. Ben held tightly to her hand, telling himself that what he saw was just a nightmare and that Mal was safe beside him. Even so, the image of the girl he knew to be his true love lying on a stone floor, whimpering, in a pool of her own blood would not leave him any time soon, if ever.

"Are you okay?", Mal's voice brought him back out of his mind, and Ben now saw the tears shining in her green eyes.

"Shouldn't I be asking you that? Mal, you are never going back to her, or the Isle of the Lost as a whole, if I have my way. I don't know much about how magic works, but I do know that it has shown me that you are my true love; I refuse, not as the Crown Prince of Auradon, but as a decent human being to send you to your death.", he answered, opening his arms to the purple-haired girl.

Mal moved closer to Ben, laying her head down on his chest and letting her tears fall freely once more. Ben, not knowing what else to do, just held Mal in his arms until he heard her breathing even back out. Not wanting to disturb the young half-faerie, and too tired to bother going back to the chaise anyway, Ben pulled the blankets back over the two of them and went back to sleep.

When the sun finally rose, Auradon Prep came to life. Chef Bouche and his staff began preparing breakfast; the Fairy Godmother and the teaching staff all woke early to prepare their daily paperwork and lesson plans; some of the students, mostly the princesses, woke to start their morning beauty rituals.

As for Mal, she woke to find Ben's arms still around her. Surprised with her own actions, the faerie felt the feeling of "not evil" that she had described to Rose and smiled. Her mother was clearly wrong when she said love and other emotions outside of anger make you weak; love, so far for Mal, was amazing. This thought in mind, she let out a giggle, which woke Ben.

"Someone certainly seems happier than she was a few hours ago.", he commented sleepily, and Mal pretended to glare at him.

"Well, now I have a handsome prince to protect me from my nightmares! Did you mean what you said when I woke up earlier?", she responded, still giggling, and Ben couldn't stop himself from smiling.

"Every word of it. I dreamt of you, you know, when you were still on the Isle. Rose saw, yesterday, because I started thinking about those dreams when I saw you step out of the limo. While it probably seems like I'm clueless, my genetic magic went haywire the second we made eye-contact.", he said in an almost-whisper.

"What is genetic magic?", she asked innocently, and Ben's brow furrowed.

"I guess they wouldn't have taught you that on the Isle, all things considered. Genetic magic is a type of residual magic that can be passed down from parent to child when one or both parents have been under a spell, cursed, or born with their own magical powers. Genetic magic is what's behind what most people actually mean when they say 'soul-mates.'", Ben explained, glad his mother explained it to him in a much simpler phrasing than the book in the library had.

"So yours comes from your dad?", Mal asked, trying her best to understand.

"Yes, his curse is what led to my genetic magic. Chad got his on both sides; his mom was put under a spell by Jane's mom to make her presentable for the Ball until midnight, and his dad was put under a curse by Lady Tremaine and her daughter Drizzella. Anastasia took part in the curse, but not because she wanted to. She lives in Charmington now, married to the baker, and Chad hangs out with his step-cousins whenever he goes home. Jane was born with hers because her mother was born with magic powers, being the Fairy Godmother. Audrey _should_ have her own because of her mother, but she probably doesn't understand it. Most of the royal students have genetic magic, even if they can't understand it, and it reacts in different ways different things each person encounters.", Ben explained further, but Mal still looked a bit lost.

"Things like what?", she asked.

"Um, well, I don't usually talk about it, but mine protects me, as well as others that I might hurt, from myself.", he told her, a deep blush appearing on his face.

"What do you mean?", Mal asked, angling her head up so that she could look him in the eyes.

"In addition to just having genetic magic, my dad passed down his temper. If I get agitated to the point of nearly snapping at someone so bad that I destroy my entire relationship with that person whilst seeming a spoiled brat, my genetic magic will take away my voice. It's happened twice before, once when I was twelve, and once right after my decree last month. Audrey wouldn't shut up about me spending more time on my decree and preparations for the five of you than with her, and I found myself unable to say anything for an hour afterwards. She thought I was ignoring her, so she joined the welcoming committee. In reality, I was trying not to yell at her for trying to tell me to put her before my sister that I hadn't, at that time, seen in person in thirteen years.", Ben admitted, snorting at the end of his statement, making Mal giggle again.

"I guess you can call me spoiled, as the only princesses I've ever known have been Evie and Rose, but I didn't realize princesses were so obnoxious and self-centered! Hey, don't freak out, Ben. You have a monstrous temper, so what? Until you get to the point where you can't say anything to anyone, I think you're okay.", Mal's tone went from giggling to serious and sweet as she reassured Ben that his temper was nothing to be embarrassed about.

"That's usually when I hide in here with a book. Example.", he told her in a joking manner, reaching over and picking Shakespeare's _Romeo and Juliet_ up off of his nightstand.

"I love that book!", Mal said excitedly before she could stop herself.

"You have Shakespeare on the Isle?", Ben asked, and Mal nodded.

"The library there is small, but we had all of the classics. It was mostly new stuff that we didn't have. Some books were only ever available in a foreign language. I had to learn French just to read a few of them, but it was worth it.", she explained, and this made him curious.

"Which ones?", Ben asked, and it was Mal's turn to blush a light pink color.

" _Cenderillon_ was one of them, as was _Le Mort de Arthur_ , but my favorite was _Le Belle et la Bête_.", she admitted, and Ben could only grin.

"That happens to be my mother's favorite book as well. Some believe faeries long ago created the books as prophecies for what would happen later on in the world. I have to say, I wouldn't have put it past that to have happened.", he said, and Mal, in a very uncharacteristically Mal manner, giggled again; why did Ben make her laugh so much, and how did he do it with such ease?

Ben laughed too, and neither of them heard the knock on the door or noticed the door swinging open. Their only hint that someone was in the room was the squeal the newcomer had emitted. While Ben quirked an eyebrow at the sound, Mal rolled her eyes and smiled.

"Good morning, Sissy.", she said calmly, and Ben sat them both up to see his sister standing at the foot of the bed.

"Finally! Ben, it's almost seven, and Gran told us last night to be back for breakfast at seven-fifteen. You two need to get up, and since we don't have time for you both to scramble to get ready, I'll take care of your wardrobe for today.", Rose said, and no sooner than the two of them untangled themselves from each other and got out of the bed did Rose envelope both of them in a cloud of pink smoke with a mere wave of her hand.

When the smoke cleared, Ben found himself dressed similarly to the way he had the day before, only he had his letterman jacket in place of his blazer. Mal, however, was dressed entirely different than before. Now, she wore dark-wash skinny-jeans, a purple tank top, a black leather jacket, and a pair of black ankle boots. Her hair was flowing freely over her shoulders, and a black velvet choker with an amethyst hanging from it adorned her neck. Ben knew he must have looked like a fish out of water, but all he could do upon seeing Mal was gape.

"Ben, you have all day to ogle her, but we need to get going. I seem to recall someone telling me not to ever be on Gran's bad side?", Rose said, somewhat mockingly of course, and Ben snapped back to reality.

"Assuming Jay, Carlos, and Evie are just outside the door, we should be on our way. Mal, may I escort you to the dining room?", he replied, chuckling as he offered his arm to the purple-haired faerie.

"You may.", she giggled, taking Ben's arm and causing Rose to doubt what she had just heard.

"Did I just hear you giggle, Mally?", she asked, and her sister-in-all-but-blood only roller her eyes.

"Love you, too, Sissy!", she said with another giggle, scaring her friend who were waiting for them as Ben had suspected.

By lunchtime, once Ben had the five at the table set aside for them at his personal request, everyone at Auradon Prep noticed the new clique that was starting to form. The table consisted of the five kids from the Isle, Ben, Chad, Jane, and Doug, the latter of which had only joined the table after the three prior assured him that no one would hurt him there. It took one nervous glance at Evie for the son of Dopey to detect a shift in the blue-haired girl's attitude towards him.

"There goes genetic magic at its finest.", Rose said with a dramatic sigh, and Mal looked ready to burst out laughing again as she realized her second best friend was the true love of her mother's sworn enemy's dearest friend's son.

"You know better than anyone that it's never who you expect, sis.", Ben said, his eyes lingering on Mal long enough to bring a light pink color to her cheeks.

"You might know better than me, bro.", Rose joked, and all nine of them laughed.

Across the cafeteria, Audrey was livid. Her boyfriend was sitting with the villain kids, Chad Charming, the Fairy Godmother's daughter, and Dopey's son. So what if one of those people she labeled as a villain kid is his twin sister? Ben was supposed to sit with her at lunch. She was his future queen after all! So what if her genetic magic hadn't signified him as her true love? She could still marry him and be Queen of Auradon! Figuring she had sat at her table and stewed long enough, Audrey stood and marched over to where Ben sat.

"Bennie-Boo, why aren't you sitting at our regular table?", she asked in a highly false, highly sweet voice.

"Audrey, may I speak with you in private?", Ben asked, his voice much colder than he, or anyone else, had heard it in a long time.

"I'm sure anything you can say to me can be said in a public setting. We are dating, remember?", Audrey answered, and Ben felt his muscles tense; he was close to losing his cool, and that was never a good thing.

"You might not want everyone to hear what I have to say.", he tried to reason with her, but Audrey was only confused by his words.

"Just tell me what you need to tell me, Bennie-Boo!", she insisted, thinking he was planning on asking her to wear his signet ring.

"Okay, Audrey, here it is: I'm breaking up with you.", he stated flatly, and the daughter of Sleeping Beauty blinked.

"What did you just say to me?", she hissed angrily, and Ben smirked at her.

"I said 'I'm breaking up with you.' You knew the whole time that our genetic magics didn't seek each other out as soul-mates; I know that to be true. My genetic magic has already shown me my true love, and it wasn't you, Audrey. Considering I already know my true love, and because of the way you completely disregard my sister and my friends as part of your own agenda the way you always have, I am more than comfortable with breaking up with you.", he said, and Audrey was fuming at this point.

"Well, who is she?", the princess in pink snapped.

"Mal.", Ben was blunt about who his true love happened to be, considering he didn't care what anyone else thought about their relationship.

"It's obviously some sort of spell! There's no way that _she_ could be your true love!", Audrey cried out, and Ben felt his temper bubbling.

Suddenly, he felt a bit of relief. It took only a moment for what caused this to be identified, as he realized Mal had taken his hand in hers. Her words from that morning came back to him, and Ben smiled at her.

"There's no spell, Audrey. Even my father could feel the connection our genetic magics made, so I know that there is no spell.", Ben stated firmly, and Audrey screeched before storming away.

"Anyone willing to bet that she hates me even more now?", Mal asked, trying to keep a brave face as every eye in the cafeteria turned on their table, her appetite gone.

"We still have some time before our next class starts, so I'm going to show Mal the library. Chad, if Audrey askes you out, tell her the truth. I think even Jane would agree to that.", Ben said, and the blue-eyed faerie turned towards the Prince of Charmington.

"If that happens, I agree with Ben, but I want to record her reaction first. Before I forget and you leave, Mal, I want to thank you and Rose both for helping me with my hair. It looks amazing, and I had fun learning my first spell. Maybe I can test it out on Lonnie to see how well I do on my own.", Jane said, and Chad nodded absent-mindedly while playing with her now long and curly hair.

Dinner rolled around, and the only things anyone was discussing revolved around the villain kids. All of the princesses who had tea with Audrey were horrified that Ben had broken-up with the daughter of Sleeping Beauty for Mal, the jocks were all surprised at the addition of Jay and Carlos to the school tourney team, and the children of good magical beings were starting to wonder which of the five was the strong and powerful force that they had all felt when the villain kids had arrived the day before. Outside of those three groups, the general conversation was about the villain kids themselves. It seemed that everyone was enamored with them.

As for the kids themselves, they seemed to be making friends easily with those Ben introduced them to. The four born on the Isle of the Lost were finally free of their parents, free to be themselves for the first time in their entire lives. Rose had adjusted marvelously to being back with her family, and it was suspected that she was the entire reason behind how well Evie, Carlos, and Jay had adjusted in one day to Auradon as a whole, let alone Auradon Prep.

'Yes,' thought Queen Belle as she looked in on the children, both her two biological children and the seven others she was beginning to see as her own as well, at dinner through the enchanted mirror, 'they're all doing so well!'

 **A/N: I hope you enjoyed this, I will try to update sooner this time! Recently, as in nearly a month to the day that I published this story, my paternal grandmother passed away; she was like a second mom to me, seeing as how my parents separated when I was three, and losing her has been difficult. But, as I know she wouldn't want me to mope about forever, I plan on focusing on my writing now. Back to the story, I know it might seem like the plan and the remainder of the movie's plot is toast now, but I have my own plan in store. Just know that there will be plenty of Mama-Bear Belle going on the offensive towards the villains, and maybe some of the so-called heroes, when she gets the chance! Please write a review and hit that nifty little submit button!**


	4. We're All in This Together

**A/N: If you are reading this, then you have obviously watched Disney's** _ **Descendants**_ **. The continuity errors aside, I enjoyed the movie. When this idea first struck me, moments after the movie ended, I knew I had to start writing it down. I hope you enjoy this! Read & Review, please.**

 **P.S., I am not meaning to bash/villainize any Disney hero or heroine. I will preface this story by saying that Belle and Beast/Adam are my favorite Disney royals and always have been. Enjoy!**

We're All in this Together

How no one had figured it out yet was a mystery. Within the entire four days the villain kids and Rose had been at Auradon Prep, more than one guy had come up to Rose asking her if she wanted to go on a date with him. It was as if no one realized she and Jay were in a relationship. Now, the day of the big tourney game, Rose and Jay both, without each other's knowing, decided it was time to shut down all of those offers for good.

There was barely a minute left in the game, and Jay and Carlos were on the bench. The younger boy hadn't intended on being on the team, but between Ben and Jay, a spot was made for him. All of a sudden, Coach Jenkins, after some prodding from Jay, put both boys from the Isle of the Lost in the game. It started out tense, but somehow, through pure teamwork between Ben, Carlos, Chad, and Jay, the Auradon Knights walked away from the tourney match with a win against the Sherwood Falcons.

In the midst of all of the excitement, the usually more reserved Rose hurried down from her seat beside Mal. Jay saw her, and he ran over to meet his girlfriend at the edge of the field. Without hesitation or warning, Rose threw her arms around Jay's neck and pressed her lips to his. Her actions were reciprocated at once, as Jay picked her up and spun the both of them around. Giggling, Rose broke the kiss.

"I am so proud of you!", she told him softly, the fact that a week before he hadn't known how to work with anyone other than the four of them showing just how far Jay had come since his arrival at Auradon Prep.

"Mission accomplished then. All I've ever wanted was to make you proud, and now I have. I love you, Princess.", he replied, and Rose felt that might have been the sweetest thing he had ever said to her.

"I love you, too, my King Cobra.", she whispered before kissing him again, though not as intensely as before.

All of the game-goers who hadn't previously known about the relationship between the two were floored by the public display of affection. Mal, near completely unfazed by it all, made her way over to _her_ boyfriend and let him wrap his arms around her. After living with the two of them for right around two years, Mal was used to Jay and Rose making out while disregarding their surroundings.

"Thank you.", was all Mal said, though it was muffled a bit by the fact that she had buried her face in Ben's shoulder.

"For?", he asked, and she tilted her head up to look him in the eye.

"For helping Jay and Carlos make the team, for teaching them (all of us, really) that we can rely on more than just each other now, and for just being you, Ben.", she answered, and the King-to-be was astounded; he had not been expecting that one.

"Well, in that case, you're welcome. You guys aren't alone here, Mal, and _you_ never will be as long as I'm around.", he assured her, and Mal smiled as she relished the feeling of love that her mother had always tried to keep her from.

"I think I like the sound of that.", she told him with a giggle.

"I do, too. So, a few of us, Chad, Jay, Doug, Carlos, and myself, thought about, on the condition that we won the game, going out for celebratory pizza tonight. Would you be interested in joining us; and please say yes?", Ben asked adorably, and Mal let out a full fledge laugh at this.

"I'd love to, Ben. Just do one thing for me: double check with your mother first. The last thing we need is for any of the four of us to fail remedial goodness because we _weren't_ supposed to be out eating pizza.", she replied, her laughter becoming infectious as Ben began chuckling along with her.

"I promise that I will.", he insisted before placing a kiss on the top of her head.

While everyone's attention turned to Ben and Mal, Chad made his way over to Jane. No one was paying them any attention, so there was no need to hide. Jane held out her hand, and Chad took it. The two walked a ways away from the field before he leaned down and pecked her on the cheek.

"So, any 'special' plans with any girls after this?", she asked him teasingly.

"Only one, my faerie princess. The guys and I were talking about going out for pizza tonight, as long as Gran and Aunt Belle approve, and I was hoping you'd join us. I know Mal's going, and Rose tends to go wherever Jay goes (and vice versa). Doug said he was going to ask Evie to join, as there's no way Ben and I could leave either of them here in good conscience, and Carlos just wants to try pizza. You'll be amongst friends, Jane, so please say you'll go?", Chad responded, and Jane smiled up at him.

"I wouldn't miss it for the world.", she answered him, and Chad let out a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding.

"We should get back over there before they all get suspicious, right?", he then asked rather glumly.

"Only for a little while longer, but yes. I actually need to ask Evie about chemistry tutoring anyway.", Jane told Chad, sighing softly herself as they walked back to the tourney field.

"Why can't I tutor you again?", he asked.

"Because the last time we tried that, we ended up making out in your room because Doug was at band practice.", she said as a round of giggles escaped her lips.

"Oh yeah, that.", Chad said with a chuckle.

"Okay, so it looks like Doug successfully talked to Evie, so I'll go ask her about tutoring. I'll see you later, okay?", Jane said to him quietly, and Chad nodded.

"Audrey looks like she's contemplating asking me out, so have your camera ready if you want that video.", he whispered before she walked over to the blue-haired girl.

"Oh, I do.", she said, and then Jane went over to her newest female friend.

Chad smiled as he watched the love of his life easily converse with a girl most of the school thought dangerous. He was so enamored with Jane, he was still smiling when Audrey called his name and he turned to face her. The pink princess took this as a good sign for herself.

"Hey, Audrey; did you need something?", he asked, turning back to Jane only long enough to nod to her to come closer and start filming.

"Yeah, Chad, I did. I was wondering if you might want to go to Ben's coronation with me?", she asked, and Chad let out a dramatic sigh.

Everyone was now paying attention to the two, as all of the unattached girls were hoping Chad would say no in order to take one of them, and the guys just wanted to see if Audrey could be rejected by the Prince of Charmington after being dumped by the Prince of Auradon. Rose was practically bouncing with excitement, anticipating seeing her least favorite person get humiliated again, and Ben was eager to see his ex-girlfriend learn a valuable lesson in relationships. The villain kids and Doug were just attempting to hide their smirks, knowing something Audrey didn't.

"I'm sorry, Audrey, but I've already got a date for the coronation.", Chad said, but Audrey raised an eyebrow.

"Which one?", she asked in disbelief.

"I only have one _real_ girlfriend. Every other girl has always been support for the front I've put up at my girlfriend's request. You see, she didn't want the likes of you and your friends bullying her because she's the one dating me instead of any of you.", Chad replied as maturely as he could manage, but Audrey still wasn't convinced.

"Is she too scared to be seen with you, or too embarrassed?", Audrey asked, and Chad merely smirked.

"Neither. She just knows the system of politics that exists in this school. After all, I know that you princesses get so upset when a non-princess dates and/or marries a prince. It's one of the many reasons _my mother_ had to fight yours for _Queen Belle's_ invitation to the ladies' luncheons the other queens hold.", Chad said firmly, making sure to remind Audrey of whom she was speaking to; he wasn't Cinderella's son for nothing.

"Chad, either tell me her name, or I'll be forced to conclude that she doesn't exist and that you're stalling me for some reason!", Audrey demanded, and Jane began laughing uncontrollably.

"I thought you hadn't learned an invisibility spell yet?", Chad asked her, and nearly everyone understood what he had just revealed.

"Oh, I haven't. That must mean I am visible and that I do exist, right?", Jane replied, walking over to him while still filming Audrey.

"You can't seriously be dating _her_?", the daughter of Sleeping Beauty shrieked.

"I am, and I don't care what anyone else thinks. Our genetic magic picked out each other as our matches when we were kids, so we've always known. So, just to clarify for you, I'm going to the coronation with Jane.", Chad said with a smirk, and the princess shrieked again before storming off; Jane stopped the video once she was out of frame.

"That went well.", the faerie said with a laugh.

"As best it could. Can I kiss you now?", Chad asked, and Jane relented, nodding as Chad lowered his lips onto hers.

If the gasp from the crowd, followed by cheers, wasn't enough of a measure of how much the six teens had shocked them, no one knew what was. Perhaps the shock would have been greater if those on and around the field had seen the looks between the son of Dopey and the daughter of Grimhilde.

While everyone was at lunch after the tourney match, Jane had enlisted her friends to help her get ready. Given the faerie's abundance of insecurity, Rose agreed to help without hesitation. Mal and Evie quickly followed, eager to either help their new friend, or, in Evie's case, play live-action Barbie.

Once Jane's clothing decisions had been made, the girls decided to move on, as a group, to Mal and Evie's room. Jane watched in amazement as Evie effortlessly threw together an outfit for herself and for Mal in less than five minutes. Rose saw the look on Jane's face and giggled lightly.

"If you didn't catch on back in your room, fashion is Evie's element.", she whispered, and Jane laughed too.

"I guess that's sort of ironic, seeing as how her step-sister is the fashion correspondent for the celebrity news channel. I never thought, until Ben had Chad and I talk with her for a bit, that Evie would be so much like Snow White.", Jane replied in her own whisper.

"That just gave me an idea! Tell them I had a stroke of genius and had to see my mom. I'll meet up with you guys in a bit. If need be, Evie can use her mirror.", Rose said as she suddenly stood up and hurried from the room.

"She has a magic mirror?", Jane asked absentmindedly, not a soul aware of the girl hiding just out of the faerie's line of sight in the hallway.

Rose rushed up to her father's office as fast as he legs could carry her, the magnitude of her idea, and the fact that she hadn't thought of it sooner, propelling her through the doors and before her parents quicker than she would have thought possible. Because of the cat-who-ate-the-canary-grin on their daughter's face, Adam and Belle set aside their own conversation to give Rose their full and undivided attention.

"Mama, Papa, is it possible to run someone's DNA against the whole of the United States of Auradon to find a parental match?", she asked, bewildering her parents.

"Yes, but what brings this up?", Adam asked.

"And before I go any further, the barrier Fairy Godmother put around the Isle nullifies any spells in progress when someone steps through it, right?", she added on to her question.

"Yes, but do get to the point, Rose.", Belle said, equally as confused as her husband at this point.

"I think I know who Evie's father is, or in this case was, but I need a DNA test to prove it.", and if Adam and Belle had been expecting that, then the two of them would have needed to have been a mind reader focused solely on their daughter's mind.

That night, at Tony's Pizza, no one paid the nine teenagers crowded around a round table in a circular booth any mind. Ben, Chad, and Jane all had to restrain themselves from laughing at the five's reaction to pizza. Rose, upon finishing her first slice, reached out and smacked her brother on the arm.

"Hey!", he cried out.

"You liar, Benjamin Florian!", she hissed. "Pizza is definitely not 'nothing special!' It is by far the third best food to ever exist!"

"Only third best?", Ben questioned with a chuckle.

"Nothing is quite as good as Gran's triple chocolate cake, and when someone learns how to make Grand'Mere's quiche like Papa I'll let you know.", Rose said with a smile, but Ben merely shook his head.

"Dad was up for a midnight snack again, wasn't he?", the prince asked his sister with a grin.

"I was in the kitchen, getting a glass of water, when he got there. It was nice to have one-on-one time with him like I had with Mama when I first got back.", his sister commented, making it suddenly evident to the others how much finding out that her parents would always love her actually meant to the Princess of Auradon.

"I told you they loved you no matter what.", Jay said to his girlfriend, and she smiled as she leaned into his side.

"I think we all did!", Carlos added, and Rose shook her head at her now laughing three best friends, three childhood friends, boyfriend, and brother.

"I'm melodramatic sometimes; so what?", she said, but then Rose, too, joined them in their laughter.

At long last, just before curfew, nine exhausted teenagers fell into bed. Ben was resting easy, an amazing day behind him. Carlos and his new best friend, the school mutt (called Dude), were curled up beside each other on Carlos' bed, fast asleep. Jay was sleeping well, his MVP award displayed across the room from him sending him sweet dreams in a metaphoric sense. Doug and Chad said nothing to one another as they went to sleep, both of them too tired to bother. Jane lay in bed with her diary lying open on her lap, making an entry about the day's events before turning off her lamp and letting sleep claim her. Evie lay in her bed, her dreams filled with visions of a certain son of a dwarf. Rose, in her bedroom, fiddled with her engagement ring in her sleep, muttering about how much she loved it to whomever was in her dreams.

Mal, however, was having anything but pleasant dreams. Once more, her mother filled her unconscious mind. The scenes were terrifying, and the sounds of screaming that went with them was even more so. When her eyes snapped open and she realized where she was, Mal began gasping for breath. Grabbing the teal sweater that Belle had given her to match her purple, blue, and white pajamas, Mal walked over to her door. She stepped into her gray slippers and went out the door.

She hadn't really thought of where she would go when she left her room, but somehow her feet carried her to the stone gargoyles guarding the entrance to Belle's rose garden. The gargoyle-guards took notice that it was Mal and let her through without hesitation. The purple-haired faerie didn't stop until she had reached the gazeebo she and Rose had sat in on that first day. Once there, hidden from any prying eyes in the castle, Mal broke down. Tears streamed down her face, her whole body shaking with each sob. Eventually, the poor girl managed to cry herself to sleep.

When Mal woke, the sky still dark and dotted with sparkling stars, she felt someone holding her. Whoever it was felt female, and she was singing softly as she ran a hand through Mal's purple locks. The song, Mal noted, sounded vaguely familiar.

"Tale as old as time

True as it can be

Barely even friends

Then somebody bends

Unexpectedly

Certain as the sun

Rising in the east

Tale as old as time

Song as old as rhyme

Beauty and the Beast", the mystery woman sang softly.

Mal let the words sink in before she recognized the song. Rose and Jay had sung it to Carlos the day of Ben's proclamation. The younger boy had said it was Belle and Adam's song. Mal thought about this as the mystery woman finally spoke.

"You're such a strong young woman, Mal. I'm so sorry you've had to go through what you have. If only I'd done something about the children on the Isle myself!", Mal realized that the woman was Belle.

"It's not your fault.", she managed to reply sleepily.

"Oh, I didn't realize you were awake, sweetheart! But, even though it's nice that you believe that, it is; as Queen of Auradon and someone who was once ostracized and judged because of what I liked to do and who my father happened to be, I should have given you all a chance to lead normal, safe lives away from the dangers of parents stuck on vengeance.", Belle insisted, still carding her hand through Mal's tresses.

"But how would you have known that the villains you were putting away would ever reproduce? They'd all gone as long as they had without producing any children, so why would they have done so on the Isle of the Lost?" Mal asked, trying to put things into perspective for the Queen.

"Love can sometimes make us do things we wouldn't normally, sweetheart. After all, I fell in love with a monster covered in fur who just so happened to have an amazingly good heart deep down inside. Chad's father fell in love with a woman he danced with at a ball, so he sent his uncle, the Grand Duke, out to search the entire kingdom until he found that woman. No one ever said villains were incapable of love. I would like to think that Jafar loved his wife so much, and that Jay is a painful reminder to him that he couldn't save her, so he pushes all of his positive emotions deep down in order to find his lamp in order to become his own master and enact vengeance on Hades for taking her life. Grimhilde likely denies the Evie the identity of her father with the mistaken belief that, if she denies it herself, she won't be able to feel the regrets she may have that he never got the chance to meet his wonderful little girl. As for your mother, love is a difficult thing for faeries to grasp. Esme, the Fairy Godmother, lost her husband in the war with the villains, but she's barely shed a tear over it because she knew she had to devote herself to Jane after discovering her pregnancy. Love changes quickly for fae creatures, and I think your mother just decided not allowing herself to feel love rather than let it change its focus was better after your father agreed to exile her. Yes, dear, I know who he is. That man was one of the first to demand that my only daughter be put to death at the age of three because of her powers.", Belle was furious by the end of her statement, and Mal was speechless.

"H-h-he-b-but…how?", was all she could manage.

"Rose's predecessor was known for cursing people. The only other person with that kind of power your father had ever met was your mother. Your niece had just been born, and he was scared she would be cursed just like her mother. I know, thinking of them as your family is difficult; I understand, trust me. I had an aunt who wanted nothing to do with me or my father until after Adam and I married, and she was a horrible woman with archaic views on gender roles. She actually thought it would have been an excellent idea for me to marry Gaston. But, back to your father, he failed to realize that killing my daughter would only lead to another enchantress being born. When that fact was brought up, the only option left was sending her to the Isle. If you think about it, your father being narrow-minded is how you found the only sister that I can tell you want.", Belle explained, and Mal blushed a light pink color at her words.

"If I hadn't already been able to determine that my biological sister is, pardon my language, a raging bitch, I might like having more than one sister. My niece, which I will never admit in public if I have the choice, is even worse. I just wish I had an actual family for once. I'd love to have parents that love me, siblings that care, and grandparents that are actually around like a normal girl my age does. Is that too much to ask for?", Mal replied meekly, but Belle let out a laugh.

"Oh, no, sweetheart, it isn't too much at all. When I was just a year older than you, all I wanted was to have a normal family. Well, at least a family unit. My mother had passed away by then, my father was his normal eclectic self, and my extended family was ignoring us. Now, I have a family again. You can, too, if you want. One day, hopefully no less than two years from now, you and Ben will marry, making you my daughter-in-law. I would be honored if, as long as we're in the privacy of our family (which includes your friends Carlos, Chad, Doug, Evie, Jane, and Jay, your future brother-in-law) and you want to, you call me either 'Mom' or 'Mama.'", Belle's words once more stunned Mal, and the girl began crying again. "Did I upset you?"

"No, you didn't. I'm just happy to have an adult who actually cares. I would more than happy to call you 'Mama'!", Mal replied with a smile, and Belle felt the happy tears leave her eyes and trail down her cheeks as the half-faerie, her new daughter, hugged her tightly.

Not too long after that, Mal made to return to her room. Belle had gone back to bed, but Mal couldn't. The pizza she had for dinner seemed like it had happened ages ago, so she decided a midnight snack couldn't hurt. So, rather than going back to bed, it was decided, in her mind at least, that she would go to the kitchens.

Walking inside the kitchens, Mal froze. A loud clatter came from deeper inside the room, and it was followed by a male cursing. Inching forward, Mal saw Adam picking up a number of pans that had fallen.

"Do you need any help, Your M- Adam?", she asked quietly, and the former beast turned quickly, shocked to see the purple-haired girl behind him.

"I wasn't expecting to see you awake at this hour, Mal. I don't usually expect much of anyone to be awake at this time of night. What brings you here?", he asked as he put the last pan back in place.

"I had a nightmare, and I couldn't sleep. I went down to the garden and cried. I fell asleep, and I only just woke up about an hour ago. I was on my way back to bed when I realized how hungry I felt.", Mal answered, omitting her conversation with her future mother-in-law.

"I myself am a bit famished at this hour, but I am unsure of what to make. Any ideas? I hear from a reliable source that you enjoy baking.", Adam knew he was being a bit dramatic, but he knew there was something Mal wasn't telling him; he had promised Belle to give the kids from the Isle of the Lost a chance, after all.

"Rose told you. As for ideas, I've been thinking about baking chocolate cupcakes for a while now; but we could never find enough chocolate on the Isle to make the consistency right.", the half-faerie answered the King, and he grinned.

"What all do you need?", he asked, and then they were off.

It took over an hour, but Adam and Mal had used every cupcake pan available and made enough cupcakes to feed the entire student body, faculty, staff, and royal family with some to spare. Each taking one for him(her)self, the two sat down to enjoy their creation. The cake was chocolate, and the icing was a cookies n' cream confection that went down into the center of the cupcake. The treat was topped with more icing and little chocolate pearls. Adam, in a stroke of baking-genius, crafted little chocolate squares with the words "Be Our Guest" written on them in gold, and each cupcake was topped with one square.

"These look almost too nice to eat.", Adam commented, and Mal smiled.

"Almost, but not close enough. I don't personally believe in not eating chocolate. It seems like some form of a crime to me.", she countered, and he conceded.

"Well then, let's eat!", and the two began to savor their chocolatey confections.

As soon as the cupcakes in their hands were gone, both Adam and Mal had to restrain themselves from eating more. There wouldn't be enough for everyone else if they even thought about it. They had worked surprisingly well together, and it paid off.

"Those were the best cupcakes ever!", Mal cheered in her inside voice.

"I agree. Perhaps, if these go over well tomorrow, we could sneak down here another time and make more treats? I happen to know an excellent recipe for sugar cookies with icing roses.", Adam said, and Mal smiled while blinking in surprise.

"Really? I'd like that. Say, where did you learn to bake? I can't imagine that being a top priority for a young prince.", she replied, and Adam chuckled.

"After my mother died, and my father sent me away upon his second wife giving birth to my younger brother, Elizabeth sort of took me in as another of her own children. She was already my governess, so it wasn't too much of a stretch. She used to tell me that one day, if I kept my attitude in check, I would be a far better father than my own ever was and could share these recipes with my children. Unfortunately, Ben is a _horrible_ baker, and I've never had time to teach Rose. At least I know one of my children can learn from me.", he told the girl, hoping she understood what he was saying.

"You too?", was all Mal asked.

"Belle?", Adam asked knowingly.

" _Mama_ and I had a nice chat in the garden. I assured her that what happened on the Isle wasn't her fault, or yours, because no one could possibly believe that villains were going to reproduce and that they are nearly incapable of loving their own children.", she said simply, and Adam smiled upon hearing how she referred to his wife.

"In that case, you should feel free to refer to me as Dad or Papa if you so wish. One day, you will be my daughter-in-law, so I hardly think it would be a stretch to be there for you if you need a father to turn to. I know it feels odd, having a family, but it can be the greatest feeling in the world sometimes. I felt like you probably do now after ten years of self-induced solitary confinement.", he said, and Mal nodded before a giggle escaped her lips.

"I think families are meant to be odd. Otherwise, they'd all be the same and just boring. If there's one thing I learned on the Isle of the Lost, it's that sometimes the families we make for ourselves mean more than the ones we're born into. Family doesn't end in blood, but it also doesn't always start there.", she stated, and Adam had to admit that she had a decent point.

"That is probably true. Now, why don't we clean this up and get to bed. Someone has classes all day tomorrow, if I'm not mistaken.", Adam teased, and Mal giggled.

"Okay, Papa.", the words fell from her lips in another giggle as if she had been saying them all her life, and Adam couldn't have been happier.

At lunch, Ben asked his friends to meet him in his mother's rose garden. The group gathered around one of the tables, not exactly knowing what was going on. Mal tried to keep calm, and she was counting the familiar chocolate cupcakes that sat on the table before them by the time Belle walked up.

"So _those_ are the cupcakes I've heard about all morning. May I, Mal?", the Queen of Auradon asked with a smile.

Nodding eagerly, Mal said, as she handed Belle a cupcake with _just_ the right amount of icing on the top for a perfect swirl. "Of course! Here you go, Mama!"

" _Mama_?", her friends and boyfriend asked in surprise; Belle ignored them while she ate the cupcake.

"Mmm, Mal, this is amazing!", she said to the purple haired faerie, who blushed under the praise.

"The icing was Papa's idea.", Mal said bashfully as her cheeks tinged a light pink.

" _Papa_?", the others asked in surprise, and Belle laughed lightly.

"Oh, but everything else was all you, ma chérie.", Adam said as he joined them.

"I suppose we should explain. Last night, we each talked with Mal separately and came to the same conclusion: Mal is Ben's true love, so she will be our daughter-in-law one day in the future; thus, given how Mal had never had a parent she could turn to in confidence, we offered to be there for her whenever she needs us to be. Family is actually the reason we asked Ben to gather you all here.", Belle explained upon seeing the faces of the teenagers.

"What about family?", Mal asked, tilting her head to the side.

"We have a Family Day every year, and it happens to be in two days. Well, not knowing what _we_ know about your home-life, Fairy Godmother set up a video-chat with your parents for tomorrow.", Adam said gently, but the Isle kids froze.

No one said a word. The garden was still, and everyone was silent. The first sign that anyone was still capable of life came when Mal pulled her legs up to her chest and hugged her knees.

"She'll know I betrayed her.", she whispered, and Belle understood completely.

"We won't tell anyone anything about what our family has discussed since your arrival here unless you want to, Mal. It was too late for Papa and me to stop it once we found out, so we decided that we would supervise the call _instead_ of Fairy Godmother. I promise you that you won't have to face her alone before you're ready to. For what she has done, I will make sure that Maleficent will never be able to get her hands on you again, petite amie.", Belle told the girl as she and Adam sat down on either side of the purple-haired faerie, who promptly leaned into Belle's embrace.

"None of you will have to worry about your parents getting ahold of you. I won't allow any of you to be put in harm's way, children. Maleficent's plots are no place for any of you.", Adam said, turning to face the others.

"But can't they take us back anyway as our legal guardians?", Evie asked sadly.

"I put a stop to that, E. I may have gone behind your back to do it, but I talked to Papa about running a DNA test to find your father. You, too, Carlos. If I can find them, or at least a living relative, it can be asked of them to become your guardian seeing as how your mothers are unfit parents.", Rose answered, and her two friends brightened.

"I know I said I would never go back, but how is it possible to stop my father from forcing me back there?", Jay asked his fiancée, but she merely rolled her eyes.

"Jay, you're engaged to the Princess of Auradon. You are contractually bound to stay here, as is Mal. Right, Ben?", Rose said, turning from the son of a genie to the almost-king.

"That would be correct, Rose, almost. I promise you that it will be by the end of the day, however. I would never allow her to be taken by the one person that probably despises her more than her own mother.", Ben answered, getting proud smiles from both of his parents.

"I'll hold you to that. Evie, Carlos, do you two want to walk with me to get Evie's results? I can run Carlos' DNA once we get there.", Rose asked her friends, both of whom nodded eagerly.

"I'll tag along, if that's alright. I'd love to see how this thing works.", Jay added.

"Don't forget your cupcakes, guys!", Mal suddenly said, and they all chuckled before taking a cupcake a piece and leaving the garden.

Ben, remembering who made the cupcakes, also grabbed one before sitting down on the other side of his mother. The three remaining in the garden with him all watched as the teenaged prince bit into it; the smile that spread across his face brightened Mal's day at once.

"Mal, Dad, these are really good!", Ben said excitedly, and Mal beamed under his praise, her cheeks turning a light pink.

In the science lab, Rose was staring at Evie's DNA test results with a smile of victory gracing her face. Of course, her mad-scientist smile caused her friends more worry than relief most of the time; it was no big surprise for them all to be backing away from her by a step or two.

"I knew it! The moment Jane mentioned Snow White being the fashion correspondent for Auradon's celebrity news, I knew there was only one answer to the mystery!", she cheered, but Evie looked at her with a confused expression.

"She's my stepsister. What does that have to do with any of this?", the unsure girl asked quietly.

"Evie, here. This is your results sheet; it should clear some things up.", Rose told her with a giggle, handing the paper over and pulling Carlos over to her.

"What do I have to do?", he asked.

"Place your finger right there in that little spot.", Rose told him, pointing towards a small pad on the confusing and slightly intimidating machine before the four teenager.

"How do you know how to work this thing? Ow! What was that?", Carlos asked as a pricking sensation went through his finger.

"I had some hairs from Evie's hairbrush for hers, but the techs who work here taught me everything I needed to know about the machine when I came down here yesterday. It looks big and scary, but it's rather simple overall.", the blue-eyed princess answered, her eyes flickering over to Evie.

"How is this even possible?", the girl in question asked, looking at the enchantress with wide eyes.

"My best guess? Your mother found out she was pregnant with you just after your father died; I believe she truly did love King Hansel, but she couldn't risk appearing weak to the public. Your mother was the only one in a position to rule after your father's death, mostly because your sister was just thirteen years old at the time. When she was sent through the barrier, the charms and spells she had used to stall her pregnancy with you failed; you were born despite everything Queen Grimhilde did to stop that exact event from happening. No matter what Audrey and her friends say, you _are_ a princess. In fact, if I am correct, you are Her Royal Highness, Evelyn Adriana Irving, princess of the Summerlands. Snow White and her husband are already in town for the coronation; I can ask her to come to family day and meet with you if you would like, E.", Rose answered her best friend (true, as Mal was now considered her sister), and Evie felt the tears began to fall.

"Could you, please?", she asked, and Rose nodded before enveloping her in a tight hug.

"Um, Rose, why is this thing beeping?", Carlos called, interrupting the moment the two girls were sharing.

"Your results should be printing out Carlos. Here, let me look at-Oh my gods of Olympus! Carlos, can you please walk with me? Jay, stay with Evie. If what's on this paper gets out before the proper parties are informed, Carlos will never be the same as before.", she said, her eyes growing to nearly the size of dinner plates when she read Carlos' results page.

"Sure, Princess, anything you need for Carlos' sake. I actually think Evie needed to draw the designs for my outfit for the coronation anyway.", Jay whispered as he kissed the top of Rose's head before she and Carlos both hurried from the room.

"I don't know, Adam, but everything is moving so fast now. In the timespan of a single week, we've regained one child and gained an additional four. I think it's time you and Henri told everyone the truth. The kids, at least, deserve to know where they come from and who their family is.", Belle said, as she and Adam sat in the library with an old but cared-for _Romeo & Juliet_ open on the table between them.

"You're probably right, my lo-", Adam began to reply, when the door burst open and Rose and Carlos rushed in.

"Mama, Papa, we have a slight situation.", Rose stated as she stopped to catch her breath a few feet away from her parents.

"What happened?", Belle asked, hurrying over to close and lock the door.

"I got the results back on Carlos' DNA faster than Evie's because of his being a blood sample rather than a hair sample. Is it common knowledge that Queen Tiana and King Naveen have a missing grandchild?", Rose asked her parents, but neither knew how to respond to that statement.

"What do you mean Queen Tiana and King Naveen?", Carlos asked, being the only party capable of speech.

"This is your DNA results, Carlos. Cruella de Vil shows up nowhere on your list of blood related relatives.", Rose told him as he slowly accepted the paper in her hand.

"If I'm not her son, then whose son am I?", the boy asked, and Belle and Adam seemed to find their voices once more.

"Maintenance for the Isle of the Lost is handled by an outside contractor. The one we had about fourteen years ago was actually a nobleman who lives in a country outside of Auradon, and he married Tiana and Naveen's younger daughter, Sophie. Lord and Lady Hamada live in San Fransokyo, far across the sea, and they maintained the Isle for the sake of keeping the villains in; Doctor Facilier had cursed Lady Hamada's parents into being frogs, after all. One day, Maleficent tripped the power grid while trying to test the limits of her powers inside the barrier. The Hamadas went to fix the problem, but they had to take their infant son along with them due to the short notice. The baby was kidnapped, and the Hamadas thought their son dead.", Adam explained, seeing much of Hiro Hamada in Carlos as he observed the boy.

"They gave up the contract and left Auradon for good after they lost their son. But, according to this paper, Carlos, you've been here and alive all along.", Belle added on to her husband's statement, her kind smile putting the nervous and confused boy a bit more at ease.

"What was I named when I was born?", the teen asked meekly.

"Birth records in Auradon show that you were born Carlos Tadashi Hamada, Lord of San Fransokyo, and Third-in-Line for King Naveen's throne. Yes, you are a prince, but you're still our Carlos.", Rose said, and her surrogate brother hugged her.

"Thank you, Rosie, for not treating me any different. Do you think the others will treat me strangely?", he asked, and Rose laughed.

"Jay is definitely going to make fun of you for a bit, and Evie will want to make your new outfits even more intricate, but Mal and I won't do anything different in the way we talk to and about, or treat, you.", she told him, hugging back.

"We can have your parent, and possibly even your grandparents, here in two days, just in time for Family Day.", Adam said, and Carlos stared up at him with large, innocent eyes.

"Really?", he asked, much like Evie had with Rose.

"Really, Carlos. I promise.", Belle said, looking the boy straight in the eye.

"Thank you, both of you, for everything. Rose and Ben assured me that the two of you are the best people a person could ever hope to meet, and I'm beginning to truly believe them. If I would have went through my whole life without knowing I wasn't truly a villain's kid, I don't know what might have become of me.", the fourteen year old said to the King and Queen of Auradon with more respect and sincerity than Rose had ever heard him use when speaking to anyone.

"Carlos, I am going to tell you something that only five people, including myself and Belle, know. I understand you, to an extent, because of my younger brother. My mother died when I was seven, and my father sent me to the castle Belle found me in shortly thereafter. He remarried, had another son, and once more was widowed. I was already cursed by the time my brother was born, and I did not know he was my brother until we decided to invite my father to our wedding just to see if he cared enough to show. I never held it against Henri for not knowing he had an older half-brother, nor will I ever do so. Henri and Ella aren't upset with me for being a beast for ten years, and that is because family, true family, accepts you for who you are. Do I get the occasional joke at my expense where my brother is concerned? Yes, but that's because it's perfectly normal. Whether or not your parents care that Cruella de Vil raised you, which they probably do, they will accept and love you. On the off chance they don't, well, you've still got us.", Adam told the young teen, and Carlos was astounded at the information he was being given.

"Chad's father is your brother?", he asked, easily putting two-and-two from his internet searches together.

"Yes, but only Chad, Belle, Ella, and I know. My father knew, but he has since passed. Hence why Henri is King of Charmington.", Adam pointed out, chuckling.

"Chad's my cousin?", Rose asked, looking from her mother to her father and back again as the revelation hit her.

"He is, and his parents told him not to say anything to Ben, and then you once Ben's decree had been made, at first. He only found out himself at the start of the school year. They'll be joining us for lunch on Family Day, as your father and I have agreed that it is high time that you kids be made aware of your relationships to one another.", Belle answered her daughter, and Rose accepted that; it made sense, after all.

"Well then, Family Day it is then. Come on, Carlos; we have to get to class, and then Evie needs to design your clothes for the coronation and everything.", she responded with a smile, bringing relief to both of her parents, and the two teens left.

Meanwhile, after finishing her designs for Jay for the coronation and for Family Day, Evie had happily made her way to Chemistry to tell Doug the exciting news about finally finding her father. The son of Dopey was already at the table when she entered the room, and it made Evie's heart soar when he turned to smile at her when she sat down beside him. Evie smiled back warmly.

"Guess what I found out!", she whispered to him.

"What? I'm a horrible guesser.", Doug replied with a quiet chuckle.

"Rose ran my DNA, and it turns out that my mother stalled her pregnancy until she was forced onto the Isle of the Lost. My father is Snow White's father, King Hansel. Snow White is my older half-sister. If she has any mercy for me, she'll accept responsibility for me when Belle and Adam ask her about it.", Evie whispered this to Doug, and the half-dwarf's face split into a wide grin.

"That's awesome, Evie! I'm so happy for you!", he told her, hugging her before he could stop himself.

"Thank you, Doug. I honestly have no clue what I've ever done to deserve someone like you.", she said softly as she hugged him back.

Doug never had the chance to respond to Evie's statement, as Mr. Deley walked into the room carrying a stack of tests. With one look from him, all of the students began scrambling to put away notes and find pencils. Evie opened her purse to retrieve her pencil when she noticed something alarming.

"Doug, did you go through my purse?", she asked him hesitantly.

"Evie, why would I? I would never invade your privacy like that. Is something wrong?", he answered, and she turned to face him, her own visage scared.

"My mirror is gone.", Evie managed to say, the implications weighing heavily on her mind.

"What mirror, to be exact?", Doug asked, closing his eyes and pinching the bridge of his nose beneath his glasses as he spoke.

"The one my mother gave me, Doug. If I don't find it, I don't even want to think about what might happen. If my mother has any of her power remaining on the Isle of the Lost it's her mirror magic. She's only tried to call me on the mirror once, but if she did it a second time and heard what we've all been doing, it wouldn't end well.", Evie tried to explain, but Mr. Deley heard her saying something even though he could not make the words out.

"Looking for something, Ms. Irving?", he asked, reaching into his pocket to retrieve the mirror he had been given.

"Actually, Mr. Deley, yes. An object that can be very dangerous in the wrong hands was stolen from me, and I need it back urgently.", she answered as honestly as she could muster without breaking down in tears.

"Would it be this?", Mr. Deley asked, holding up the mirror.

"Yes, that's it! Where did you find it, sir?", Evie asked, though she was quick to contain her excitement.

"It was turned in to me by a student concerned with someone cheating in class. If I frown upon anything in my class, it would be cheating.", Mr. Deley told her, and Evie turned to see Audrey smirking at her.

"Evie would never cheat on an assignment in your class, Mr. Deley.", Chad said, as he was always quick to defend his friends, a trait he had inherited from his mother.

"Certain, are we, Mr. Charming?", Mr. Deley asked.

"Chad's right, sir. Evie is extremely intelligent. She wouldn't need to cheat, let alone _have_ to cheat on any assignment in this class.", Doug said, his tone slightly angry.

"If you boys are so convinced, I'll allow Ms. Irving to take the test. If she passes, I will forget this incident ever happened. If she fails, all three of you fail and she faces expulsion.", Mr. Deley offered, and the three nodded in understanding.

"I won't fail.", Evie said firmly, and the tests were handed out.

The tests had all been turned in, and Evie was waiting for hers to be graded. Normally, the grades would be finished in a few days; but this was now a special case. She had to pass this test, and not even for her own safety. Evie couldn't fail because that would mean Chad and Doug would fail as well. Out of all three of them, Doug deserved to fail the least. She remained lost in her thoughts until Mr. Deley cleared his throat.

"It seems I owe you an apology, Ms. Irving. Your test and mirror.", he told her, the two aforementioned objects in his outstretched hands.

Looking down at the test, Evie squealed. She had managed a B+ under the pressure of having the grades of the other two riding on her performance. Smiling, she looked up at Mr. Deley.

"Thank you, sir, for giving me a chance. I know most people probably wouldn't have, given my mother's reputation.", she told him sincerely, and he gave her a smile.

"This test proved to me how bright you are, even under pressure, Evie. Thank you for being such a good student. Go along and tell your friends they've probably passed. Chad is probably awaiting the answer so he won't face an angry Queen Cinderella come Family Day. I think Doug just wants to know that you are okay.", the professor said, and Evie nodded before making for the door.

"Thanks again, sir.", she said before leaving the room.

Evie found Doug first, sitting alone on a bench just outside the building with a book in-hand. Quietly, she snuck up behind him and lowered the test paper in front of his face. It only took a few seconds for Doug to notice what it was.

"I knew you could do it!", he cheered, and they both began chuckling.

"Thank you, for, well, believing in me. No one outside of who I consider family ever _has_ believed in me so much.", she said as she sat down beside him.

"I'll always believe in you, Evie. Don't ever thank me for doing what I would do no matter what.", he said in barely a whisper, and the gap between the two got narrower; then Mal showed up.

"Evie, help, please!", the purple-haired faerie asked with an almost shriek.

Sighing and moving away from Doug, Evie turned to face her best friend. Mal looked worried, which wasn't altogether unusual. The fact that Ben wasn't at her side was, however.

"What do you need help with, Mal?", Evie asked, folding her hands delicately on her knees.

"Ben wants to go out later, just the two of us. I was okay on the group date, but this is a real date!" Mal was plainly nervous.

"Sweetie, calm down. Just because it's just the two of you doesn't mean everything changes. Ben loves you, no matter how many people are around. Now, you have a cute purple dress and leather jacket with matching boots in your closet. Go take a nice, hot shower; get dressed, and do your hair. By that time, I should be back upstairs to do your makeup. Just breathe.", the blue-haired princess said slowly, and the faerie nodded before hurrying back up to the castle.

"This is the side of you I wish more people saw, you know, as opposed to just seeing your mother in you.", Doug told Evie in a hushed tone as she turned back to face him properly.

"What, the girly side with outfits for every occasion planned out ahead of time? Why would anyone be interested in that?", she joked, and he shook his head.

"I meant the good friend who cares so much about others that she will put her own happiness aside temporarily to help them.", he clarified in a random burst of confidence; this made Evie smile.

"Growing up, you never knew who to trust. Once we all started living together, it became clear that the five of us could only trust each other. Now, we're learning to trust new people.", she explained, placing her hand over his, which had somehow ended up on her knee.

"Go help Mal, Evie. I can go find Chad and tell him you passed. You probably don't want to go looking for him anyway. Now that everyone knows he's seeing Jane, the two of them are a lot less discreet than before. Those two could be mid-make-out session anywhere at this point, and I've walked in on more disturbing things, seeing as how I'm Chad's roommate.", Doug chuckled as he explained this to Evie, and the princess giggled along with him.

"Thanks, Doug, again, and thanks for not letting me scar myself for life. I'll see you later, okay?", she said, her eyes pleading with him to agree.

"Okay; if I'm not too scared later on, we can meet in the library.", he agreed, his tone a bit dramatic towards the middle of his statement.

Evie smiled, nodded, and leaned in towards Doug as she got up to leave. Without warning the half-dwarf, she gently kissed him on the cheek. Doug reddened under her kiss, but he couldn't stop himself from smiling again. Evie just seemed to have that effect on him for who know what reason.

Mal, with her hair and makeup done and dressed in the outfit Evie had selected for her, was anxiously awaiting whatever was in store on her date with Ben. When they had met at the front doors of the school, he had seemed a tad fidgety. By the time they had made it to the canyon, crossed the bridge over it, and settled down on a picnic blanket in the clearing by the waterfall and lake on the other side, Ben's nerves were on high alert. It almost made Mal want to laugh, seeing him like this. But, the young faerie still knew that it took more than just a date to mess with Ben this bad. Something was going on that she was unaware of.

"Do you remember telling me about how you dreamt of me when I was still on the Isle?", she asked him in hopes of distracting him for a moment or two.

"Yes, I do remember that. I think it was my genetic magic's way of trying to tell me that the right girl was just around the corner. I just needed to be patient.", he answered, unsure of where Mal was going with this.

"Well, I dreamt of you, too. In fact, we were in a place that looked a lot like this. I actually told Rose about it the morning you made your decree. She almost missed the limo because she had to go back for the book I gave her on dream analysis.", Mal remembered fondly, savoring the look that had been on her mother's face at the realization that someone vastly more powerful had been on the island and in contact with Mal for most of the previous sixteen years.

"That must have been what I saw her thinking about your first day here. She knew that whole time and never said a word to either of us about it!", Ben was laughing at this point, so it was clear he harbored no animosity towards his twin.

"At least she didn't try to force the issue. Rose happens to be well aware that I tend to get emotionally unstable when I try to burry my feelings and follow orders, but the feelings pop up anyway. Also, I know that you know how much she despises Audrey. I do too, but not for the same reasons.", Mal told him, and the soon-to-be king was curious about her response.

"Why do you despise Audrey exactly?", he asked, tilting his head to the side as he spoke like a puppy.

"Mama and I talked about this when I had my nightmare and went to hide in the gardens early this morning. Audrey's grandfather is my _father_. King Stefan knew I existed from the moment my mother told him. It was her bargaining chip to stay off the Isle of the Lost. He told her she was lying, but she wasn't. Evie's mother had helped her stall her pregnancy because of the war between heroes and villains. Some may say my mother did that out of concern for me, but I know it was because she wouldn't be able to navigate the battleground as easily if she were pregnant. The decree Papa made happened twenty years ago, but the barrier wasn't sealed until eighteen years ago. My mother demanded a closed-court trial in Auroria to prove to King Stefan that she was with child. Closed-court meant that it would only be her, him, and Queen Leah. She got her demands, and they fought each other on the issue for two years. Evie's mother was even brought in at one point to be a witness. They convinced King Stefan, and my mother actually asked him to take me. She knew that A) the Isle of the Lost is no place for a child to grow up, and B) that she wouldn't be a very good mother to begin with. He and Queen Leah refused, stating that I would be too much like my mother to raise to be a proper princess. As far as I know, Aurora doesn't know I'm her half-sister. However, as she seems to also be a bit of a snob when it comes to whether or not someone is of noble birth, I'd rather keep it that way unless absolutely necessary. With Aurora being my sister, Audrey is my niece. She doesn't know, and I don't want her to. As of right this moment, barring Aurora and Phillip having another child, Audrey believes she stands to inherit both her parents' fortune and titles as well King Stefan's estate. Finding out about me would only make her think worse of the things that have happened. Not only will I have 'stolen' her boyfriend, I will have also 'tried to usurp' her. That is the last thing I need right now.", Mal explained, surprised with herself for keeping her voice level.

"This probably won't help much either. Mal, the reason I asked you to come here with me was so I could give you this. It's my signet ring, and I want you to wear it. I figured that you probably wouldn't be okay with getting engaged to someone you only met last week, so this is just a promise from me to you that I will love you no matter what happens.", Ben told her, taking a gold ring from his pocket and presenting it to her.

"I'll gladly wear the ring, Ben, but there's something you should know.", she said with a smile, and Ben smiled back.

"What would that be?", he asked, as Mal's face got closer to his.

"If you would have proposed, I still would have said yes.", she told him, and Ben chuckled as their lips _finally_ met.

 **A/N: I know I promised the update before Monday, but between English essays and my new** _ **Supernatural**_ **story, I've been a bit preoccupied. ! I know it might seem like the plan and the remainder of the movie's plot is toast now, but I have my own plan in store. Just know that there will be plenty of Mama-Bear Belle going on the offensive towards the villains, and maybe some of the so-called heroes, when she gets the chance! Please write a review and hit that nifty little submit button!**


	5. Bad Blood

**A/N: If you are reading this, then you have obviously watched Disney's** _ **Descendants**_ **. The continuity errors aside, I enjoyed the movie. When this idea first struck me, moments after the movie ended, I knew I had to start writing it down. I hope you enjoy this! Read & Review, please.**

 **P.S., I am not meaning to bash/villainize any Disney hero or heroine. I will preface this story by saying that Belle and Beast/Adam are my favorite Disney royals and always have been. Enjoy!**

Bad Blood

The next day, the royal family of Auradon stood in the back of the room during the Isle Four's Remedial Goodness class. Fairy Godmother wondered exactly why the King and Queen insisted upon supervising the video chat, but who was she to stand in their way. So, being as good-natured and non-confrontational as she could, she stepped back and let them take over as soon as the video link was established.

"Hello, children.", came Maleficent's voice, obviously not noticing Belle and Adam in the background.

"Evie, it's Mommy!", Grimhilde called over her cohort's shoulder, and her daughter grimaced as she heard her mother's voice; she would not react well to Evie seeing Doug.

"You children are never far from our thoughts!", Jafar added, not seeing Jay roll his eyes.

"Mal, how much longer until I see you?", Maleficent asked, and the purple-haired faerie visibly paled.

"This will be the last time you see Mal if we get our way.", Belle spoke up, gently placing her hand on Mal's shoulder to reassure her future-daughter-in-law.

"And Mal is also contractually obligated to stay in Auradon.", Adam added, careful to control his temper.

"What do you mean by that, King _Beast_?", the dark faerie asked irritably.

"Mother, I will not ever be returning to the Isle of the Lost. For years, you have told me love makes you weak; but you are wrong. You thought you could keep me from loving people, from trusting people, by neglecting my education. If you had taught me anything about magical theory, you would have taught me about genetic magic. You didn't, so I had to learn about it when I got here because mine reacted to someone else's. I'm not returning to the Isle because, in a few years' time, I will be marrying Prince Ben. I love him, and I know he loves me.", Mal spoke calmly at first, but she was beginning to cry by the end of her explanation for Maleficent.

"Carlos, is that a dog? I know, Baby, it's the perfect size for earmuffs!", Cruella demanded before switching her focus to her stole and speaking to it.

"He's the perfect size for a pet! I love this dog, and he loves me. And, FYI, your dog is stuffed! So, just give it a rest!", Carlos cried out, not yet ready to reveal to Cruella that he knew she wasn't his mother.

"Burn!", Jafar shouted, and even the heroes were fighting the urge to chuckle; it had been a good comeback, but it just launched Cruella and Jafar into an argument that really was far more stupid than it needed to have been.

"Would both of you please stop acting like children?", Jay asked loudly, gaining the attention of the villains once more.

"Very well, but this won't be the end of it, you two-bit salesman!", Cruella jabbed, and Jafar nodded before turning to Jay/the screen.

"How soon before the rest of you return?", he asked, and Jay snorted.

"Much like Mal, I am contractually obligated to stay in Auradon. Do you remember the girl you tried to take Mom's necklace from the day we left the Isle?", Jay asked his father.

"Yes, she was rumored to be the daughter of The Enchantress.", the sorcerer and genie said, not understanding why his son was smirking at him.

"She isn't The Enchantress' daughter; she _is_ The Enchantress. The power is passed on to someone new every time the current Enchantress dies. The Enchantress is _Princess_ Rose, daughter of King _Adam_ and Queen Belle. She also happened to be my fiancée.", Jay explained happily, a smug grin on his face as he saw his father's shock.

"Evie, please tell me you're going to come home soon.", Grimhilde said faintly, in complete denial about what was happening.

"Mommy, no. I love you, and I always will. You're my mother, and you did the best you could under the circumstances; but, I need to be myself. I've got a boyfriend, I think, but he isn't a prince. He's actually of dwarven descent.", the blue-haired princess said calmly, but her mother was none too pleased.

"But what about our plans?", she asked, sounding like a disappointed teenager.

"I don't want that; I haven't since I was fourteen. I like reading and learning; I like school. I even like studying! I may actually have a future as a fashion designer, which would be amazing! Times have changed, Mommy, and girls can be smart now, too. Girls can have jobs, and girls can do more than wait around in a locked tower for a prince to come to her rescue. I'm meeting with Snow White tomorrow, as I now know she's my half-sister, and I intend to ask if she'll give me a chance to actually _be_ her little sister. I'm sorry, Mommy.", Evie answered gently, not wanting to upset her mother too much.

"Carlos?", Cruella asked, and the youngest sighed before letting out a dark chuckle the others hadn't realized he had in him.

"Why would I? You aren't even my mother! Rose ran my DNA through the database here, and I know the truth. You and Dr. Facilier kidnapped me when my parents were restoring the barrier's power, and they thought I was dead. They know that I'm alive, at least they've known since this morning, and I fully intend on getting to know them, my aunt, and my grandparents over the next week. You have no control over me anymore. I'm not your son, and I'm not your slave. Find someone else to touch up your roots.", Carlos responded firmly, and Rose couldn't hide her proud smile; she knew Carlos had been wanting to tell Cruella off for years.

Just when they thought everything had been said and done, Jafar started talking again. He wasn't done by a longshot. Jay knew that by the look in the older man's eyes.

"What could have possibly got you to do such a thing as leave your family for a girl, Jayden?", he asked in a hard tone.

"I didn't leave my family; my family is here with me. You stopped being my family the day you started blaming me for my mother's death. You could have regained family status if you had just apologized for blaming me and moved on, but you lost all chance of earning forgiveness when you didn't even shed a tear when you got an innocent girl killed. I told you not to sell possibly faulty equipment to people, and you told me it was just part of the job. You said they would find out it didn't work properly and throw it out after a few days, and then I could bring it back for you to sell again. Instead, a girl no older than seven went to plug in the radio you sold her parents, and she was electrocuted. I told you it was your fault; I got a broken arm and a speech about how it was the same thing as how it's supposedly my fault Mom died because I wasn't home that night. I'm done with you.", Jay was nearly in tears by the time he stopped explaining himself, and Rose was doing all she could to keep him from breaking completely.

"With the emotional and physical abuse you have put these four through, it truly is a wonder that they all managed to turn out to be such good-hearted young men and women. The four of you trying to force them into doing your bidding and sending them here was the best thing you could have ever done for the ones you call your children. I think we're just about finished here.", Belle's voice was steady, and her tone was overly calm; the others were surprised at how well she put their parents in their place.

"All further communication with Mal, Jay, and Evie will be at their own discretion. I believe Carlos will no longer be contacting you at all, Cruella. Have a nice day!", Adam said in much the same tone as Belle, though he did smirk and give a small wave to the four villains as he motioned to Jay to hit the button to turn off the video chat.

As soon as the screen went dark, silence took over the room. Ben, Adam, and Belle were soaking in everything the four had said to Cruella, Grimhilde, Jafar, and Maleficent. Rose had led Jay over to the nearest chair, and was now in his lap, stroking his hair in a calming manner. Ben, while still processing everything, wrapped his arms around Mal and let her cry into his chest. Evie stayed as near to the young prince and the half-faerie as she could while giving them their space, putting her own emotions aside to comfort her best friend. Carlos, meanwhile, had moved to sit on the floor by Rose and Jay, leaning his head against his surrogate brother's knee while twirling Jay's discarded red beanie in his hands.

"That went better than I thought it would.", he said, looking up at Rose, after a few minutes passed.

"True; no one got cursed.", Evie said with a grin.

This, of course, set all of the teenagers off. Within moments, the silence was replaced with laughter, all of them remembering the looks on the four villains faces when they discovered their children were never returning to the Isle of the Lost.

"I have to say, Mom and Dad, you were both calmer than I'd imagined.", Ben said once he got his laughter under control.

"It's a lesson I learned a long time ago, Ben. Think of your words as a knife. When you act like they don't get under your skin and make you utterly sick, the villains take it like it's one stab after another. It hurts more that way.", Belle answered, and the ones who grew up on the Isle nodded in agreement.

"She's right. If they can't get a negative reaction out of you, it makes them feel like they don't deserve the villainous power that they once had. Being calm, and even sweet, to them is like being flat out degrading to us.", Rose explained, now just playing with Jay's hair.

"You'll catch on soon enough, son, I promise.", Adam said with a deep chuckle and a wide smile.

"And I'll be here to help you if the need to confront a villain ever arises.", Mal said, her tears ceasing as her smile took over.

Jay had remained quiet for the rest of the day. That night, he sat on his bed, wide awake. He sat there, thinking about his father. Why could Jafar not understand that selling faulty products was wrong? How is it the death of a young girl had no effect on him? Most of all, how had Jafar fathered someone with such a strong moral compass in the first place?

These thoughts swirling around in his head, Jay pushed himself off his bed and made his way over to the desk where the MVP trophy from the tourney game sat, near glowing in the moonlight. He had won this, but not alone. Jafar always told him "There's no team in I," but Jay now knew that he wouldn't be anywhere but six-feet-under if he and his friends didn't act like a team. Why couldn't Jafar see that you don't always have to work alone to succeed?

Sighing to himself, he grabbed his jacket and shoes. He needed some air, so he slipped past the tossing-and-turning Carlos and made his way down to the rose garden. Nearing the gazeebo, he could only smile and shake his head; he wasn't even remotely surprised by what he saw.

"I knew you'd be up all night.", Rose told him as he reached out for her hand.

"I should have known you would have known that and been waiting for me.", he said, leading her out towards the open field area of the garden.

"You need to stop questioning why. Jay, it doesn't matter, and it never will. At least, it doesn't matter to any of us.", she said as they laid back on the grass and stared up at the stars.

"This place looks so different from the inside.", Jay mused, trying to follow her advice and let the questions go.

"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?", Rose asked, smiling over at him.

"Good. It's one thing to see everything from above it all, but it's even better to see everything up close. The best part hasn't changed though.", he remarked, earning a curious look from the princess.

"And what would that be?", she asked, her smile faint, but present.

"I'm with you.", Jay stated as if it were obvious.

"I think being here with you is the best part, too.", Rose replied, though she could feel her eyelids growing heavy.

"I think someone's sleepy, and I don't mean Doug's uncle.", he joked, and she gave him a half-hearted glare.

Ignoring the glare, Jay helped Rose to her feet, and the two walked back inside the castle. Jay made sure Rose made it to her room, but the princess held onto his hand even after she opened her door.

"You need to go to sleep, Princess.", he whispered to her, but she still held on.

"I will. Stay.", she replied sleepily.

"Rose, I can't. People might talk.", he explained, but she shook her head.

"You never cared before, and I don't care now.", she insisted.

"I never cared before because no one knew, aside from the gang. Now, if the wrong person finds out, the other princess won't stop bullying you. I don't want to see you get hurt, Princess.", he said gently, brushing her hair out of her face.

"I don't care what they say, and I'd have to care in order for their words to hurt. Audrey isn't stupid enough to try anything on Family Day anyway. She wouldn't want her parents or grandparents finding out that she was rejected by two princes because of her complete disregard for genetic magic, would she?", Rose said, and Jay realized she wasn't planning on giving up.

"You're probably right.", he admitted reluctantly.

"So stay with me tonight. Please, Jay?", she asked again, and this time, he caved.

As they lay in Rose's bed, her curled into his side, Rose was easing into sleep. She was also still talking. What she was saying, Jay wasn't really listening to.

"I'm not afraid of the gossip.", Rose said, and that caught Jay's attention.

"And why is that?", he asked, taking the chance to get a glimpse of his beloved's mind's inner workings.

"I know I'll always have you to keep me from falling apart and flooding the country. You know me too well to not see when I'm that upset.", she told him, and he knew it was true.

"You're absolutely right, my Princess, you'll always have me here.", before he had even finished saying this, however, Rose was already, and finally, asleep; Jay would never admit it if Mal, Evie, Carlos, or Ben ever asked him if being beside Rose helped him sleep better at night, even if it did.

The next morning, Carlos woke to find Jay missing from their dorm. Rolling his eyes, the newly discovered prince got dressed and made his way to the girls' dorm with Dude. He wasn't surprised to bump into Ben along the way.

"Hey, Carlos, Dude. I thought Jay would be with you?", the soon-to-be King asked as he greeted the boy and the dog.

"He's actually why I was on my way to see Mal and Evie. I know where he is, but I thought it would be best for the three of us to go get him as opposed to you…or anyone else for that matter.", Carlos chuckled.

"And why is that?", Ben asked, raising an eyebrow.

"It's best if I let Mal tell you. I could, but it requires a lengthy explanation that I honestly can never make it through on my own.", the fourteen-year-old said, shrugging.

"Well then, let's go see the girls.", and the sixteen-year-old led the way.

"He's in your sister's room.", this was the first thing Evie said when Ben asked about Jay, and his vision blurred for a moment, only clearing when Mal forced him to sit down on her bed.

"Why?", he croaked out, slightly dizzy.

"After the confrontation with Jafar, Queen Grimhilde, Cruella, and Maleficent yesterday, Jay didn't speak a word. The only thing we know of that's worse than a silent Jayden Nagendra is a bored Loki. Personally, I'm glad the latter never visits this realm.", it was Carlos that continued, and Ben noticed them all shudder at the mention of Loki.

"Why is that? And who is Loki?", he asked the trio, all of whom looked surprised.

"Loki is the adopted son of the All-Father, Odin, and his wife, Frigga. He's a member of the Norse pantheon, and he's the only person Doug's family dislikes more than Evie's mom. He's a sliver-tongue and a trickster, hence why they call him the god of lies. You can imagine how him being bored spells disaster.", Mal explained, and Evie began giggling.

"I think it's actually why those seven left Nidavellir.", the princess noted, triple checking the contents of her purse, a habit formed in the wake of Audrey's act of thievery.

"Anyway, when Jay is being silent, it usually means he's upset. He hates showing negative emotions in front of us, so he tends to just suppress it all until he bursts. He's always had to be the strong one, as he's the oldest, and he doesn't think we should ever see him break. Normally, when he decides to let it all out, he goes somewhere where he can be alone. Here, it's your mother's rose garden.", Carlos continued, and Mal took over once more.

"When he got there, Rose was probably waiting for him. She always knows when he's about to break, and she always manages to be there to piece him back together. Jay would never say it out loud, but she makes the pain easier to deal with for him.", Ben was confused by his girlfriend's words.

"What pain?", he asked, and Evie took her turn again.

"The pain of rejection, of blame, and of just having a truly good heart. Jafar has never made things easy for Jay; he works him to the bone all day long, and then he yells at him, and sometimes _breaks_ his bones, late into the night. He's never been able to put the blame for his wife's death on his wife or on Hades. It's always Jay's fault to him. On more than one occasion, he's woken from a dead sleep, screaming his lungs out from nightmares about his father. Our parents always ignored it, thinking we were practicing torture skills on one another.", she said, rolling her eyes at the end.

"It's her light.", Ben whispered, it finally dawning on him why his sister was able to help her friends the way she did.

"Huh?", the trio asked in confusion.

"Everyone is born with a light inside him or her that they can choose to turn off. The light, metaphorically, is your intentions to be good or evil; and, if there's one thing I know about my sister, she is almost the embodiment of good. The only person I've ever met with enough light inside to compare to Rose has been the Blue Fairy. Rose making the choice to be good led her to help you when you needed it most, which showed each of you that you had good inside of you as well. He has nightmares because he is good. The same can be said for all of you, I'm sure. Now, why don't we go see if they're decent before heading down to breakfast. I'm sure Evie has something special planned to get you all ready for Family Day. I know my mother has plans for me.", the last part escaped Ben's mouth in a bit of a groan.

As they neared Rose's bedroom door, the four stopped. They could all hear Rose yelling, and that didn't happen very often. What had Jay done?

"If you don't sit still and let me get this taken care of, you will not go down to breakfast. Now, give me my brush back!", they heard her scream, and Mal sighed before pushing open the door and walking over to the vanity area where Jay sat, scowling.

"Do you want Rose to brush out your hair, or would you rather I did it?", she asked, and Ben sensed it was meant as a threat.

"Fine, but I _can_ brush my own hair, you know.", the half-genie said, straightening up in the chair.

"It's much easier if I do it, that way I can part it for you properly. Once that's done, it doesn't hurt your scalp so much when you pull it back in a ponytail.", Rose pointed out, and from Jay's content sigh, it was assumed that he agreed.

That afternoon, they all gathered in the main garden for the Family Day celebrations. The glee club, led by Ben, gave a rousing rendition of "Be Our Guest," and Mal had discovered chocolate covered strawberries. Rose and Evie were busy pulling Jay and Carlos out of the chocolate fountain every few seconds. As soon as the song was over, Belle and Adam motioned their two biological children over to take their yearly family photo. This would be the first year all four of them would be in it in thirteen years.

"Are Evie and Carlos' families here yet, Papa?", Rose asked her father impatiently.

"They are, Rose-petal, so bring them over here to us when we're done with the picture.", Adam answered.

The photographer snapped the photo, and the twins ran off the second they knew they were in the clear. They laughed the whole time they were running back to their friends. It was almost like they were three-years-old again.

"Someone seems overly happy.", Mal said, smiling at the twins.

"Evie's sister is here, and as is Carlos' family. Dad said to bring the two of them back over to him when we were done taking our family photo.", Ben told them, and Rose grabbed Evie's arm with one hand and Jay's with the other.

"C'mon, you guys!", she cheered, and Ben extended his hand to Mal and motioned for Carlos to follow them.

Across the courtyard, Belle was talking with Queen Tiana and King Naveen, their eldest daughter, Miranda, their youngest daughter, Sophie, and their son-in-law, Hero.

"I know how hard it is to not know if your child is safe or even alive. I spent thirteen years wondering what had happened to Rose after the driver left her to fend for herself. Just know that, no matter what happened to him on the Isle, Carlos is a bright young man with a good heart. He's also had someone watching out for him while he was there.", she told them all, smiling as she saw her children nearing them.

"Who, Your Majesty?", Sophie asked, her dark skin paling.

"My daughter. Rose sort of adopted Carlos as a younger brother, and she took care of him to the best of her ability. I'd like to think my future son-in-law was watching out for him just as well.", Belle assured, remembering the way Carlos tended to seek Rose and Jay's approval before anyone else's.

"Your daughter is getting married already?", Tiana asked, not really sure what Belle was saying.

"Not for a few more years, but she is engaged. Despite being the son of Jafar, Jay is very much so like Aladdin. We've been meaning to introduce them, actually. He's a very nice young man, and he and Rose remind me so much of Adam and myself. You were hoping there was some secret so that you could marry Miranda off already, Tiana. I know you too well by now.", Belle joked, and Tiana laughed.

"If I could get her to stay at a ball for more than half-an-hour, we wouldn't have this problem! I know I was the same way when I was younger, but I was already married and had her when I was her age!", she replied, and Miranda smiled at her mother.

"I'm just not ready yet, Ma. I'll know when I am though, at least according to Dad.", the crown-princess of The Crescent Kingdom said.

On the other side of Belle, as Carlos' family laughed merrily and eagerly awaited the return of their lost child, Adam spoke to Snow White and Florian.

"I know what it's like to know someone exists but not know they're your younger sibling. If Belle and I hadn't invited my father to our wedding, I'd have never known Henri was my brother. All I'm saying is that Evie deserves a chance, and you should give her one. She's an incredibly bright girl, and she's Mr. Deley's favorite student, if I'm not mistaken. She's also been seeing Dopey's son, Doug, and their genetic magics matched them the moment they met.", he told the King and Queen of the Summerlands.

"Adam, you've been our friend too long for us to not trust you. You named your son after me! We'll give her a chance, we promise. Right, Snow?", Florian responded as he looked at his petite wife.

"Of course! I always wanted a little sister!", she nearly squealed, and Adam was reminded a lot of Evie.

"I think the two of you will get along just fine.", he said with a chuckle.

Upon arriving at where the two families stood on either side of the King and Queen, Evie and Carlos were released by their friends. They both nodded, understanding that the others felt it was important that they meet their families in private first. Ben, by way of trying not to make a scene, ushered his girlfriend, his sister, and her boyfriend over to where others were playing croquet.

"Good luck, E.", Carlos whispered, and the young princess smiled at him.

"Good luck, C.", she replied, and the two went towards their respective families.

Evie did her best to not appear nervous as she approached Adam, her sister, and her brother-in-law. Silently, she prayed for her sister to like her. Evie realized that she had never wanted anything so much in her life before, and she didn't want her chance at an actual blood-relative caring about her to be taken away.

"Evie, there you are. I think it's high time you met your sister. Snow, this is Evelyn Adriana Irving, your half-sister. Evie, this is your half-sister, Snow White Ackerman.", as Adam introduced the two, who turned to face each other, Evie was surprised to see how much she did look like her sister.

"STAY AWAY FROM HER, YOU HORRID OLD BAT!", the two sisters and two kings turned in alarm at this sudden shout, and Evie and Adam both paled at what they saw.

"Carlos, are you ready?", Belle asked the fourteen-year-old, and he nodded.

"I need to meet them.", he said quietly, and Belle led him over to a group of five people standing just some little ways behind her.

"Carlos, these are your grandparents, Qu- Tiana and Naveen. This is your Aunt Miranda. These are your parents, Sophie and Hero. Ladies and gentlemen, this is Carlos. He's been well taken care of, just as I told you.", Belle introduced Carlos to the group, not calling each person by their title as to not make the boy any more nervous than he already was.

Immediately, the fourteen-year-old prince was swept into the arms of his parents, eagerly reciprocating their hugs. The rest of his newfound family piled on, and Carlos found himself feeling extraordinarily happy.

STAY AWAY FROM HER, YOU HORRID OLD BAT!", the hug-pile ended as soon as those words were heard; Carlos and Belle shared a look before taking off, the Crescent Kingdom's royal family right behind them.

As Mal played croquet on her own, occasionally watching Ben help Jay and Rose out, she was approached by an older woman in a pink skirt-suit. She knew who this woman, her graying auburn hair piled atop her head like a crown, was at once. Keeping to herself, she allowed the woman to speak.

"Hello, dear. I don't think I've seen you around before.", she said, and the purple haired faerie smiled.

"I'm new, sort of like a transfer student.", Mal answered politely.

"Grammy!", Audrey called as she neared them.

"Oh, Audrey, my angel!", the older woman said, embracing the pink princess.

"We should probably go, Grammy, before you get put to sleep for a hundred years.", Audrey sneered at Mal.

"My god, it _is_ you!", the older woman snapped, taking Mal in for the first time.

"What do you care? You're the one who left me to rot on that prison camp of an island just because of who conceived me!", Mal hissed, not bothering to hide her abundant dislike, bordering on hatred, of her stepmother.

"You were destined to grow up to be just like _her_ , so taking you or leaving you on that rock was no difficult choice!", Queen Leah retorted, leaving Audrey confused.

"I was a baby! All babies are born innocent; it's the way they are raised, and it's the way you care for them in their formative years, that makes them turn out the way they do. Infancy, early childhood, and puberty are the most important times you can influence a child. While I seriously ever doubt that my mother ever truly loved me, I do know she at least _tried_ to give me a chance. Then again, how could I expect you to understand that? You're the one that sent your own daughter off with a trio of faeries to keep her safe from a spell that would take sixteen years to even happen just because you actually thought something would happen to your precious Aurora before then. Once a curse is cast, there's no need to do anything during the interim; they will always fulfill their purpose.", Mal responded, feeling her heart-rate increase.

"Is that a threat? I'll have you out of this school and back on that island with your mother faster than you could even bother cursing me!", Leah demanded to know, not seeing the tears in her stepdaughter's eyes as genuine.

"Sissy!", Mal cried out, and Rose was at her side in a flash of pink light.

"STAY AWAY FROM HER, YOU HORRID OLD BAT!", she screamed, moving Mal behind her.

"Sissy?", Mal whispered, the tears still threatening to fall.

"It'll be okay, Mally. Ben will be here in a moment.", Rose assured her younger sister, not taking her eyes of the Dowager Queen for one moment.

"I forgot, you steal men just like your mother, too!", Leah sneered coldly, and Rose fought to keep the garden from flooding.

"First, you do _not_ talk to my sister like that. Second, _Audrey_ is a lot like her grandfather; just as your husband married you for your throne, disregarding the match genetic magic made between him and Maleficent, Audrey has twice now tried the same thing. First, my brother broke up with her because _his_ genetic magic matched him with Mal. Second, Chad Charming refused to go on a date with her because his genetic magic matched him with Jane Bellamy, the daughter of Fairy Godmother; I'm pretty sure the only reason she hasn't tried throwing herself at Jayden Nagendra, son of Jafar, is because he's half-genie and not yet a prince. Mal, nor her mother for that matter, has ever stolen someone else's significant other for her own pleasure and benefit. Third, I hate defending Maleficent, so don't ever make me do that again!", Rose said harshly, but not a single syllable was shouted.

Everyone was watching the showdown between the two teenage girls and the elderly queen at this point, and Rose was glad to sense Ben and Jay walking up behind Mal and herself. Seeing her friends, parents, aunt and uncle, and friends' families headed her way as well also aided in her being able to keep control.

"How _dare_ you speak to me like that! I am the former Queen of Auroria!", Leah screeched, prompting Ben to speak up.

"And Mal is the future Queen of the United States of Auradon.", he said, arms wrapped tightly around his girlfriend.

"Grammy, what's going on?", Audrey finally asked, angry that "everyone" seemed to know something that she didn't.

"Do you really want to know, Audrey?", Mal asked her, but the half-faerie's voice was filled with sadness.

"Yes!", the tanned princess said, really wishing she hadn't by the time Mal finished speaking.

"Once upon a time, about fifty-five to sixty years ago, your grandfather was a poor farm-boy. He wandered into the Moors one day and befriended a faerie named Maleficent. They were linked by a genetic magic match, only he didn't seem to care about it, despite Maleficent's warnings about magic's consequences. Humans tended to be skeptical about magic back then, so he ignored it. When they were sixteen, Stefan the farm-boy gave Maleficent a gift for her birthday; as he had no money he could buy her a gift with, he gave her what he called 'True Love's First Kiss.' Unfortunately, he decided soon after this to begin working in the King's castle. When the King was injured by Maleficent in battle after trying to take the Moors and banish all of its native _magical_ creatures, like the very faeries that raised your mother, he told all of his men that the first to kill the beast that wounded him would get to marry his daughter, then _Princess_ Leah, and be next on the throne. Seeing a way to achieve his dreams, Stefan returned to the Moors and convinced Maleficent that he still loved her. She believed him because of the genetic magic, and she trusted him enough to sleep near him after she became drowsy from him drugging her. That night, he cut off her wings while she slept, taking them back to his master as proof he had slain his attacker. He would have killed her if the genetic magic would have let him, but he was forced to let her live. Stefan married Princess Leah, the King died, and the newlyweds were crowned King and Queen of the kingdom. When their daughter was born, an innocent little ray of sunshine, Maleficent arrived to congratulate Stefan, not threaten him. Her main intention was to get her wings back, so her plan _had_ been to threaten to curse the baby unless he handed the wings over. Naturally, Stefan was overly cocky in his ability to sweet-talk Maleficent. She didn't get her wings, and he claimed to have never loved her, so baby Aurora was cursed. Sixteen years later, the curse came to fruition despite everything Aurora's parents did to stop it. Curses cannot be stopped; they're like prophecies. Aurora was rescued by Prince Phillip, they married, had you, and had everything they could have ever imagined. Oh, wait, this isn't about your mother. While your parents were enjoying their honeymoon, the war against the villains raged on. Stefan was captured twenty years ago, and he came face-to-face with Maleficent for the first time since she cursed Aurora. Somehow, instead of fighting her, he got into bed with her. Obviously, this was mostly because of the genetic magic; not so obviously to Stefan, Maleficent became pregnant that night. He was released by Maleficent, who believed he wouldn't hurt her if they met again, and fled back to Auroria. Queen Grimhilde, who was already using magic to stall her own pregnancy upon the death of her husband, King Hansel, helped Maleficent conceal hers for two years. Then, another twenty-one months was spent trying to convince Stefan that he had gotten Maleficent pregnant and for him to take the child so the child wouldn't be raised on the Isle of the Lost. That conceited bastard and this selfish cow said that I would never have the option of being anything other than evil and refused to take me in. Maleficent and Grimhilde were carted off to the Isle of the Lost, and both of them experienced the last stretch of pregnancy there, giving birth to me and to Evie. Three years ago, your grandfather decided to quit paying our rent. I guess he thought I was finally old enough to take care of myself at thirteen. We had nowhere to live, and my best friend at the time, Jay, offered us a place to stay. Do you know what I got for talking with someone outside of my mother about family problems? I got my arm broken in three places, a hairline fracture on my collar bone, two broken ribs, and a sprained ankle. I was unconscious for most of my recovery, but Jay had convinced Rose to use her magic to heal me, as she was the only one the barrier had no real control over. Then, I bullied her, not knowing what she had done for me. After she and Jay started dating, I got to know her better and became her friend. When I was attacked by the guy who was once William Hook, Captain Hook's son, on Maleficent's orders, the following year, Rose became my sister; poor William never took her curse seriously, as he didn't seem to grasp that she _is_ the Enchantress. I may be related to your mother, but I doubt she can ever be my sister. The people you call your family are selfish and cocky individuals, who know nothing of how the world around them actually works because they spend so much of their time living in a fantasy world where everything is just peachy because they're royalty.", Mal's story made even the strongest guys on the tourney team, not counting the ones who already knew Mal's story, feel sick to their stomachs.

"Why didn't my mother ever tell me?", Audrey asked, turning from Mal to her grandmother and back again.

"She never knew herself; _they_ never told her. I've had the opportunity to ask to speak with her since I've been her, but I've elected not to talk to her, as she seems kind of snobbish. Of course, I can't say I'm too impressed with her behavior and attitude towards my future mother-in-law; that may have something to do with my opinion of her.", Mal answered calmly, though the wet lines on her face proved she was still upset.

"Mal, I am so sorry. If-if I'd have known- We're blood, and you should never treat your blood-relatives the way I've treated you. I don't expect you to forgive me, but I am truly sorry.", Audrey said quietly, truly stunned by the things Mal had just told her.

"You're right, on many counts, Audrey, but you missed one more thing. You should never treat people in general how you've been treating us. Being royalty doesn't make you any better than anyone else. Carlos is the only one out of the five of us who doesn't have some sort of magical skill, and he would have been the only one to not be able to do anything to you had we not all decided to be the bigger person when we first arrived here. From what little I know, which has been mostly from reading stories and just knowing Rose and Evie, there's a lot more to being a good princess than just demeaning everyone who isn't a royal and trying to find a rich prince to marry.", Mal told her, and Belle could only smile as she thought about what a wonderful Queen of Auradon Mal would one day make.

"How would you know what makes a good princess, Mal? You've never even been to a Princess Tea Party.", Audrey reasoned, gaining one particular princess' attention.

"A good princess always puts her subjects' happiness above her own.", Evie voiced, the teenaged generation moving forward to flank Mal, Rose, Ben, and Jay.

"A good princess always acts with dignity and grace.", Rose added, looking over towards Chad, who rolled his eyes before continuing with the next line.

"A good princess always treats others with respect and makes it known.", he quoted, and Jane spoke the next line.

"A good princess greets her subjects with a smile upon her face.", she said, and Doug and Carlos chuckled as Ben and Jay fought silently over who would speak next.

"A good princess always does not what is easy, but what is right.", Doug said, not waiting around for the two taller boys to quit arguing like the brothers they were destined to become.

"A good princess always follows her heart.", Carlos said, nudging Jay, who sighed in defeat and spoke up next.

"A good princess always protects her kingdom with all her might.", he said, as Ben cleared his throat.

"A good princess always knows being a friend is the best place to start.", he said simply, not expecting to hear the next voice at all.

"A good princess always allows herself to be curious.", Adam spoke, knowing exactly what the teens had been quoting.

"A good princess always knows when to speak her mind.", Florian added, his thoughts in line with his best friend's.

"A good princess always allows herself to be both carefree and serious.", Belle said, and Snow White nodded.

"A good princess always knows when to be firm and when to be kind.", the Queen of the Summerlands finished the last quatrain before all twelve of them turned to look at Mal.

"Follow these simple tips for success,

And you, too, can be a good princess.", the sixteen-year-old faerie said the couplet with a smile on her face, watching as Audrey gaped at her before turning to Queen Leah.

"I thought you said only princesses _born_ into royalty knew that?", she asked her grandmother, and the elderly woman knew she should have been ashamed of her behavior at that point.

"After everything I've told you, you're still going to believe what she's said about you and your duty as a princess? Plus, my being raised on the Isle of the Lost aside, I was born just as much of a princess as you were. You realize that your grandfather is _still_ my biological father, right?", Mal asked, and Audrey blushed.

"I'm sorry.", the princess in pink whispered, looking down at the ground rather than at her aunt.

"In addition to that, the only people in this little group that weren't born into royalty are Jay, Jane, and M-Queen Belle.", the purple-haired faerie said, careful to remember her audience.

"Fairy Godmother told me the sonnet just after Adam and I got married.", Belle said, and Audrey was able to infer that she told it to Rose, who told it to Jay; Evie's mother was royalty, so she would have known it before she met Rose.

"Obviously, I was taught the sonnet by my mother. She informs all of the princesses-by-marriage of it, so I have to know it if I'm to be a fairy godmother someday.", Jane explained, though everyone knew it was more likely she would be a fairy _princess_ than godmother.

Before Audrey could open her mouth to apologize, Leah was moving to lead her away from the crowd.

"Oh, don't leave because of us. Guys, spend time with your families while you can. Mama, Papa, stay here and have a nice time socializing. Just call when it's time for lunch.", Rose said as sweetly as she could, and then she and Mal made way for the private rose garden with their heads held high and their boyfriends at their sides.

 **A/N: Remember how I said I'd have more time to write once things cooled down? Yeah, that didn't happen. My father's family turned my grandmother's estate into an all-out war, and my mother's mother passed away a month ago. While these last eight months has been a bit of a challenge, I hope to have more frequent updates soon. I know it might seem like the plan and the remainder of the movie's plot is toast now, but I have my own plan in store. Just know that there will be plenty of Mama-Bear Belle going on the offensive towards the villains, and maybe some of the so-called heroes, when she gets the chance! Please write a review and hit that nifty little submit button!**


	6. Piece by Piece

**A/N: If you are reading this, then you have obviously watched Disney's** _ **Descendants**_ **. The continuity errors aside, I enjoyed the movie. When this idea first struck me, moments after the movie ended, I knew I had to start writing it down. I hope you enjoy this! Read & Review, please.**

 **P.S., I am not meaning to bash/villainize any Disney hero or heroine. I will preface this story by saying that Belle and Beast/Adam are my favorite Disney royals and always have been. Enjoy!**

 **P.P.S., This chapter was inspired by the relationship I have with my father versus my stepfather,** _ **Gilmore Girls**_ **and** _ **Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life**_ **, and a song which you all could probably guess.**

Piece by Piece

The remainder of the morning was spent in Belle's rose garden. At lunchtime, a nervous looking Adam entered the garden and walked over to the foursome. Rose and Ben could tell something was going on, and it didn't seem good.

"What happened, Dad?", Ben asked.

"First, it's time for lunch. We're eating in the private dining room today. Second, I received an urgent call from Auroria's embassy. Mal, Aurora would like for you to meet with her as soon as possible, maybe even tomorrow after the coronation. I told her I would pass along the message, but I could make no promises.", Adam said, and Mal took a deep breath before speaking.

"How did she find out?", she asked simply.

"After you defended yourself, and quite marvelously in my opinion, I'm afraid most of the student body began talking about it on social media. #PrincessMal is currently trending.", the King of Auradon said grimly.

" _Great_! That's _just_ what I needed.", Mal groaned sarcastically, and Ben gave her hand a squeeze.

"It could be worse, Mal. You're legitimately a royal. What do you think they'll talk about when we announce our engagement in a few years?", Jay asked her quietly.

"Utter chaos and corruption in the castle? Am I evil, or are you truly good?", Rose asked teasingly, making Mal laugh.

"Have Mom and Dad, or even me, gone off the deep end for allowing it?", Ben added, increasing the laughter.

"Thanks, guys. Now, don't the two of you have an aunt and uncle to meet?", Mal asked, prompting the twins, and thus the whole group, to move forward towards the dining room.

The scene in the dining room was, in a word, bizarre. Chad was holding Jane, who was sobbing into his jacket, while their mothers and Chad's father stared at them in disbelief and a mixture of other emotions. Fairy Godmother looked almost as upset as Jane; King Henri looked livid; and Queen Cinderella looked somewhere between sad and angry. It was a look of sheer disappointment, and it was one Mal and Jay knew quite well, given their upbringing.

"What's going on here?", they heard Adam ask Belle, and the Queen of Auradon sighed before ushering them into the connecting kitchen.

"Ben, close that door, please? Esme and your aunt and uncle will need some time to talk to their children.", she said first, and Ben did as he was told.

"What's going on, Mama?", Mal asked worriedly.

"Well, for starters, Jane's father wants to see her. He walked out on Esme and Jane when the latter was still in the womb; and the last time she saw him she was no more than five or six years old. Now he wants to be in her life again as if nothing has changed. Word got out, much like your parentage, Mal, of hers and Chad's genetic magic match, and now he claims that all he wants to do is to meet his future son-in-law. Secondly, Jane is pregnant.", Belle explained, and there were gasps all around.

"She's _what_?", Adam asked.

" _Pregnant_. Congratulations, dear, we're about to be a great-aunt and great-uncle. Thankfully, with her faerie genetics, Jane shouldn't even start to show until the very end of her pregnancy over the summer. If you four _ever_ do this, however, I probably won't be holding back my temper. I am _way_ too young to be a grandmother!", she insisted, getting a few good-natured chuckles out of her kids.

"We understand, Mama. We'd all need a few more years of guidance from a proper mother and father, like you guys, before we even thought about that. It's not like we, Ben aside, have had very stable role models.", Rose said, and Belle smiled at her.

"She's right. I would be a horrible mother right now, I'm sure. I know very little about stable households, even less about _loving_ ones. However, I wouldn't object to learning.", Mal added, and Belle turned her smile on the other girl.

"I love you, girls, really. If, at least five years in the future, you find yourselves bearing my grandchildren, I promise I will be there to help guide you to the best of my ability; it's what mothers are for.", she told the two, pulling them away from their respective boyfriends for a hug.

"We love you, too, Mama.", they chorused, and Adam smiled at the trio of women before turning on the boys.

"You should both know I'll always be here for you to ask me for advice; it's what fathers are supposed to do, and I know better than anyone what it's like to have a dad that doesn't do that. Everything I know about kids was either wisdom passed on from Maurice or learned on the job.", he said to Ben and Jay, who both nodded in understanding.

"Didn't Jane try to see her father a few years ago?", Ben asked, no one bothering to comment on the men going out of their way to not have a feelings-filled moment that most would consider to be unmanly.

"She did, hoping he'd teach her magic. Unfortunately, he said he didn't have time, and he sent her back to her mother with no further contact with either of them until about half-an-hour ago.", Belle said, garnering a snort from both Rose and Mal.

"What?", Ben asked, and Jay broke into the conversation.

"Jane's magical potential is substantially higher than one might expect. In short, it seems her father missed the chance of a lifetime to be the one credited with training her. Mal and Rose took her on as their student, their apprentice, if you will, so they get to share the glory that comes with training someone with that much potential. Her father will get no recognition for it.", he explained, and Ben gaped at his girlfriend and sister.

"I trained both Jay and Mal, though there was only so much I could teach them inside the barrier. The day we had to help you and Chad convince her to join us at dinner, I realized she was ready for simple magic. One of my final tasks for Mal, as her Magic Mistress, was for her to use her working knowledge to help teach Jane the practical side of spellwork. If you can teach the practical while mostly only knowing the theory, you can do the practical yourself. The spell I did to get the two of you ready for breakfast our first morning here is a simple one Mal has been able to both master and teach Jane just over the time we've been in Auradon.", Rose explained further, her best friend/future-sister-in-law nodding along with a smile on her face.

"It's a good way to exercise your magic daily without causing any major catastrophe.", Mal said, confusing Ben once more.

"I didn't realize magic was so complex.", he said, and the three other teens nodded seriously.

"Your magic is like a muscle that you can't see. If you don't flex it, work it out, it'll just deteriorate. It's a 'Use it or lose it' situation.", Mal explained simply.

"My magic work-outs usually involve meditation, as genie magic is more involved at the atomic level of things. We create something out of nothing to grant wishes, or normal genies do, at least. Being in touch with the very molecules in the air is key to mastering genie magic.", Jay added, but Rose had her own take.

"Where small and simple spells are good for Mal, and meditation is good for Jay, I have to exercise my magic a little differently. Although mine is ultimately rooted in my emotions, it does mostly focus on transfiguration; I do best by turning small inanimate objects, like rocks or pieces of driftwood, into new, shiny things. If I get too upset and try to transfigure something, it might not turn out right; that gives me an indicator on whether or not I need to reign my emotions in again. Anger means more grotesque things, such as when my predecessor cured Papa. Joy equals out to more pleasant things, like Mal's amethyst choker; I gave that to her for completing what I affectionately call Magic Apprentice Boot Camp.", she said to her brother and parents, giving Mal an affectionate nudge.

"So you didn't just conjure it out of thin air your first morning here then? It was with the rest of her stuff in her dorm.", Ben guessed, and the girls nodded.

"Yep, you've got it!", Rose told him, as a person not familiar to Jay and Mal entered the room.

"And the long-lost niece has indeed returned.", the newcomer said, and Rose turned around with a large grin on her face.

"Uncle Chip!", she giggled out, hurrying over and practically throwing herself into the just-post-college-aged man's arms for a hug.

"I missed you, too, kiddo. Alright, Ben, Your Majesty, your turn!", Chip said, and Ben tossed pretense and princely manners aside in order to greet his uncle with a hug of his own.

"I'm so glad you're here, Uncle Chip.", Ben told him as he broke the hug.

"As if your mother would let me live if I missed your coronation AND Family Day? Just kidding, Belle, but the only reasonable excuse for missing this would be if I were either dead or incapacitated.", Chip retorted, earning a chuckle from his step-sister and brother-in-law.

"You've already missed the best part of the day.", Belle chided with a hint of mystery in her voice.

"And that would be?", he asked, moving to hug his step-sister and best friend.

"It seems Dowager Queen Leah finally got hers. I need to check to see if anyone recorded that!", Adam said before he could stop himself.

"How?", Chip asked eagerly as he exchanged manly hugs with his brother-in-law.

"The answer to your question is right in front of you, Chip.", Belle told him with a light laugh, inclining her head towards Mal and Rose.

"Rosie, dear niece, what did you and your friend here do?", Chip asked teasingly.

"Well, Queen Leah decided to threaten Mal with expulsion from Auradon Prep. In addition to her not having any right to expel students, Mal did nothing wrong to her. She started belligerent attacks on Mal, essentially saying Mal is inherently evil and a boyfriend stealer, and she had her in tears by the time I got there. I spoke my mind, Mal revealed to everyone who'd gathered to watch that King Stefan is her biological father and that he and Queen Leah knew about her but refused to take her off the island her entire life, and we put both Queen Leah and Audrey in their places.", Rose said, the smile on her face devilish.

"Please tell me someone got that on video?", he asked, and the room dissolved into laughter.

"We should check School of Secrets tonight. Lonnie knows everything that happens around here that's headline worthy.", Ben said, and the other teens nodded.

"Adam.", none of them had heard the door to the dining room open, but everyone turned when Fairy Godmother called to the King of Auradon.

"Yes, Esme?", he asked, and she took a deep breath.

"I stalled him for now. I explained that, with the coronation being tomorrow morning, there is a lot I have to get done tonight; therefore, I can't possibly find time to meet with him until after the semester ends. He told me he'll be too busy to come for a visit next semester, as late winter and early spring are when Camelot needs the most help. I responded by telling him that summer isn't a good time for Jane or me because I have paperwork for incoming students to handle, orientations to set up, and your squabbling staff/surrogate uncles to deal with, while Jane trains with Mal and Rose. He wants to set a meeting date for next year's Family Day.", she explained, and Belle responded first.

"This is actually good. No, hear me out. By the time he finally gets around to seeing you or Jane, she'll have had the baby and hopefully completed her training. We'll have time to prepare her. Jane won't go into this meeting with her father as vulnerable as she was the last time.", the Queen of Auradon reasoned, and each person found him or herself agreeing.

"If things go my way, she'll finish training before she has the baby. My control method might be good for pregnancy mood swings.", Rose said, her determination shining in her eyes.

Lunch was a happy affair once everything had been sorted out. Henri and Ella got to know their niece, her boyfriend, and their nephew's girlfriend; they felt that Jay and Mal fit perfectly into the family, as the two teenagers understood what family meant more than most kids their age. The King and Queen of Charmington could also tell that Mal was just as perfect a fit for Ben as Jay was for Rose.

Something Ella noticed, something that her husband did not, was how Belle and Adam treated both teens. She saw how the pair spoke to them in the same manner they did their own two children, how they talked to both of them about their interests and hobbies, and how they showed genuine care and affection for the two villain-spawned teenagers. Ella saw several similarities in how they behaved with Mal and Jay to the way Henri and Adam's father had with herself and how Henri was with Jane. She knew that her husband had taken to being there for Jane when she was young because of not only her genetic magic match with their son, but also because of her father walking out on her and her mother to return to Camelot once his insane desire to capture his archenemy when Mad Madame Mim had been satisfied. He had made infrequent visits after his initial leaving; however, once Jane had shown no magical potential beyond that of a normal faerie, the visits stopped. Ever since that had occurred, Henri had always tried to make up for all of the man's shortcomings as a parent. Ella wasn't all too surprised to see that her brother-in-law and sister-in-law/best friend were much the same behavior-wise.

After lunch, while everyone else in the family had returned to the main gardens for the remainder of Family Day, Ella made her way to the music room. Smiling sadly to herself, she saw Jane at the piano.

"Mind if I join you?", she asked, and Jane jumped.

"Your Majesty! I apologize; I just wasn't expecting anyone to come in here. Of course you can join me.", the young faerie exclaimed, and Ella raised an eyebrow at her.

"Jane, between the fact that I helped raise you and that you're engaged to my son, I think you can probably call me 'Ella' by now.", she said, and the girl's cheeks tinged a light pink color.

"I know, and I apologize. Today has just been…long. Even the day we weren't sure if Chad was going to pass Chemistry wasn't this bad.", Jane said, and Ella chuckled.

"How did my straight-A son almost fail Chemistry?", she asked, and Jane giggled.

"Audrey stole Evie's magic mirror; Evie tries to keep it under close supervision so her mother can't accidentally try to make contact and overhear something she's not supposed to. Well, Audrey took it and tried to make Evie look like a cheater. Chad and Doug stood up for her and said that Evie is smart enough to pass without cheating. They were all three told that, if Evie passed, she would get the mirror back. If they failed, on the other hand, all three would flunk the course. She got a B+.", the teenager explained with a laugh.

"Well, that was quite noble of Chad and Doug both. Jane, you know that I'm proud of you, right?", Ella asked, placing a hand delicately on the younger girl's shoulder.

"Really?", Jane asked, answering Ella's question.

"Jane, whether or not you were currently carrying my grandchild, I would still be proud of you. While I am sure you were hesitant at first, you've become such good friends with Evie, Mal, Jay, and Carlos, and you've reconnected with Rose. So many others still treat them like they're evil, but you've given them a chance to prove that they aren't. Just by doing that, you are proving to be a very brave and courageous young woman. I know, even though she won't come out and say it, your mother is also very proud of you.", the blonde woman said, her blue eyes meeting Jane's.

"Thank you, Ella, truly. Ben introduced me and Chad to the other four, but Rose sought me out on her own; she and Mal taught me how to do a simple spell to style my hair, and I begged to learn to change my nose. The two of them refused and made me see what Chad's always seen. I don't need magic to make myself pretty, and hanging out with Audrey and Anxlin isn't really worth it. I gave them a chance because they gave me one first. Isn't that fair?", Jane explained, and Ella smiled.

"Exactly; now, why don't we rejoin everyone in the gardens?", she said, and Jane nodded in agreement.

Down in the gardens, Henri decided to have a talk with his, essentially, soon to be niece-in-law. With the revelation that Aurora happen to be her older sister, added to the fact that her father might as well be worse than her mother, being around other people was sure to be a lot for the young girl. Discovering Adam was his brother had been a whirlwind experience for himself, after all, and that was without the press finding out about it.

"Mind if I sneak one of those?", he asked as he saw the girl taking delight in the strawberries at the chocolate fountain.

"The more the merrier, I say.", she told him with a slightly red smile.

"You know, Mal, I know first-hand how much it sucks to find out you have an older sibling; but, I also know what can happen if you judge your newfound sibling too early.", Henri said as he dunked a strawberry into the fountain.

"Did Papa hate you when he found out you were his brother?", she asked tentatively.

"No, he didn't. Adam was in love with the idea of being a big brother from day one. Never mind the fact that I was almost twenty-one by then! I was actually the judgmental one. With all of the rumors I had heard about him, I thought my brother to be a barely civilized man with an out of control, vile temper and a low intelligence level. When we met face to face, I realized Adam was none of the things I had heard; his mannerisms were as regal as my own, his speech was impeccable, his intelligence quite possibly outmatched my own, and his temper was kept under control. He was ecstatic to see me, though, and he never treated Ella differently because of her past.", Henri answered, and Mal chuckled.

"Mama and Aunt Ella have similar backgrounds. Why would he treat her differently?", the teen giggled out, and Henri blushed.

"As it is, I had been out of the country for much of the year and a half leading up to my brother's wedding. I didn't know until afterwards, when Ella told me, that Belle was an inventor's daughter. I've never known her to not possess those leadership qualities we see in her personality today, and I've never known her to not also possess the same grace, kindness, and gentle manner all of the other princesses-turn-queens have. When Eric and Ariel married the following year, I was caught up enough to know that she was a mermaid, if it helps.", he joked, and Mal smiled.

"It does a little, Uncle Henri. Kidding! It's fine that you didn't know; despite being his best friend for three years, Rose couldn't figure out that Jay is enough of a gentleman to not call her his girlfriend before officially asking her. She thought he had a thing for me, which he didn't, until he explained it to her. Then, about a year later, Mama explained genetic magic to Ben, who used their twin connection to tell Rose, and she knew then that their love was real and meant to be. Oh, and Ben, he almost proposed to me two days ago; he decided not to because he thought I might say no. He knows we're meant to be, and he still thought I, who was taught by his own twin to trust my magic and my instincts, wouldn't want to get engaged to a man I'd just met.", she said, and Henri shook his head and smiled.

"I guess it's just a family trait then. Speaking of, how is your magic progressing? I ask, not only because I care, but because I heard you were training Jane.", he asked, and Mal smiled brightly.

"I'll have my mastery tasks completed when Jane masters the basics, and she is progressing beautifully. I wouldn't be surprised if she had the basics down before the school year ends.", the teenager said excitedly.

"I'm proud of you both.", the King of Charmington said, his eyes narrowing as he caught sight of someone over Mal's head.

"Thanks, Uncle Henri.", Mal whispered, turning around to see Aurora and her husband Phillip entering the garden.

"You don't have to talk to her, Mal, but I'd give her a chance to say her piece. After all, you said yourself that Stefan and Leah never told her about you.", Henri said quietly, and the girl nodded.

"I know.", she said, watching as the two walked over to where Adam and Belle were standing as they talked to Sultan Aladdin and Sultana Jasmine.

Taking a deep breath, and relishing in the fact that Belle had just called Jay and Rose over to introduce them to the royal couple of Agrabah, Mal made her way over to the growing group. Adam, who had turned to greet Aurora and Phillip, saw her and nodded. She felt that confronting her sister wouldn't be half as hard at this point.

"Aurora, Phillip, it's nice to see you again. May I introduce you to Princess Mal D'Arcy?", Adam said, taking Mal by the hand.

"How do you do, Your Majesties?", Mal asked formally, curtseying slightly, but never releasing Adam's hand.

"I'd be doing a lot better if my little sister didn't address me so formally. Is their anywhere we could talk privately, just the two of us?", Aurora's gentle voice came, and Mal looked up to see a face which resembled her own, only age lines, a nose, cheekbones, and irises showing a difference between the two.

"I know a place. Oh, Papa, before I forget, we so need to make strawberry tarts with chocolate drizzle the next time neither one of us can sleep!", the teenager said as she turned from her half-sister to her future father-in-law.

"That sounds like a plan to me, mon chérie. Say, Phillip, how long has it been since you've seen my brother? Henri, get over here!", Adam said, calling out to his brother as a distraction for Mal and Aurora to use as cover to sneak into the castle.

Inside, the two daughters of Stefan went to the kitchens. Since all of the lunch dishes had been cleared away, and it was assumed that most of the students were going into town to eat dinner with their families later on, the room was essentially deserted. Mal sat down on her preferred stool, and Aurora took the one beside her.

"I wish I could have done something about the way you grew up.", Aurora said after a few moments had passed.

"It's not your fault, Aurora. Honestly, if your mother had a different personality, I might have grown up in a castle, sheltered away from the world after what you went through. If I had, I wouldn't be me; growing up the way I did showed me the value of family, and I learned that family neither starts nor ends with blood.", Mal explained, but her half-sister merely shrugged.

"But I could have given you a home.", she said, and Mal groaned.

"Aurora, you had your own child to raise, and you didn't even know who I was. There is nothing you could have done, and that's okay. I don't blame you.", she insisted while shaking her head.

"Something tells me that you aren't ready to be sisters yet.", Aurora said after a moment or two.

"Did you notice the way I addressed His Majesty Adam Devereux, King of the United States of Auradon, as Papa in the gardens?", Mal asked, and Aurora sighed.

"Yes, but I didn't say anything because I wasn't sure how close the two of you were at the time. I assume you're pretty close then.", the Queen of Auroria answered.

"Quite obviously, I wasn't raised by normal parents. Maleficent treated me like a lump of clay she could mold into her image, and Stefan and Leah flat out ignored me after I turned thirteen. I didn't have the faintest idea of what a stable, loving parent was until my first night here. Mama and Papa both were so loving and so kind to the four of us that didn't belong to them, and they showed us that it was okay to leave a broken home and start over.

"Two nights ago, I had a horrendous nightmare and couldn't get back to sleep to save my life; so, given that I am allowed in whenever I want, I went down to Mama's private rose garden. I cried myself to sleep and woke up to her singing to me. She apologized, much like you just did, for not getting me off the Isle sooner. I told her it wasn't her fault, because no one can know that villains will either reproduce or be incapable of loving their children more than themselves, and we bonded. We had a long discussion about families, and she gave me permission to call her Mama.

"When Mama went back to bed, I made my way here. Papa was in here, making a mess of the mixing bowls and baking sheets, and I offered to help him clean up. He knew something was wrong, so he asked me to help him with his late night project of the day. About 2,000 chocolate cupcakes later, we had bonded as well. He gave me permission to call him Papa, and he acknowledged that we have quite similar backgrounds. Much like me, Papa was abandoned by his father at a young age; we've both had our lives saved by magic; and we've both found that, sometimes, the blood of the covenant is stronger than the water of the womb.", the teenage faerie explained with a small smile and a shrug.

"They've given you a family and understand your background. Is there anything else as to why you aren't ready to be family?", Aurora asked tentatively, hoping for a negative response.

"Actually, there is one more thing. Mama and Aunt Ella are both amazing queens despite not being born into royalty. Why would you think it would be proper to refuse them invites to your ladies' luncheons for so long, especially Mama?", Mal asked by way of reply, and Aurora blushed scarlet.

"No one knew that Adam and Henri were brothers at the time the United States of Auradon was founded, so none of us ever understood why Henri was Adam's chosen successor instead of one of the more established royal houses. Because Belle and Ella were so close, many of us just assumed that they'd had something to do with it. When the heads of state were notified the day Rose was sent to the Isle of the Lost, all of us who had been so cruel to the two of them felt terribly ashamed of ourselves. At that point, Ella had already been attending the luncheons for four years; Belle had been attending for three-and-a-half. We didn't honestly know of any way to make it up to them, so we just didn't do anything.", Aurora admitted, and Mal took a deep breath and reigned in her anger.

"Well, as a former bully of a legitimate princess, I can easily tell you that the words 'I am sorry' carry a lot of wait as long as you truly mean it. Without that little phrase, I wouldn't even be here right now in the most literal sense possible. Rose is the only reason I'm even alive to tell you this, and I put her through ten years of hell on the Isle of the Lost. I mean, Jay wouldn't even let her go into the marketplace on her own because of me. Once I apologized, and she knew I meant every last word, she never left my side; for the last two-and-a-half to three years, Rose has been my Gemini Cricket, my fairy godmother, and my sister. Oh, and if you think being raised by three nosey faeries was bad, try living with the Enchantress herself. Rose literally knows me better than I do half the time; our first night here, she refused to let me sleep alone because she knew I'd be so conflicted over breaking away from Maleficent, the only mother I had ever known, that I would have night terrors.", the teenager explained, and her half-sister frowned slightly.

"Are they that bad?", she asked of the night terrors.

"Rose has been present once before when I had one; I screamed so loud that the villains sleeping down the hall thought we were practicing excellent torture techniques on one another and were too proud to even check on us. If they had, Maleficent, Queen Grimhilde, Jafar, and Cruella would have tried getting rid of Rose a lot sooner; Jay had moved her into the second attic space at The Bargain Castle without any of the adults knowing, and the five of us kept it a secret. After that one terror Rose witnessed, she refuses to be around me when I have them. She would hear me in her thoughts before she'd hear my screams, and she'd send Jay in to wake me as gently as he could. Knowing who caused my night terrors and why makes her anger go way out of tamable range, so she has to either remain at a safe distance or stay tucked into Jay's side the whole time. I think she chooses distance to keep Evie and Carlos from having to see me in that much pain or her in that particular state of anger.

"Now, the one I had our first night here, Ben was present for that one. I had cried myself to sleep on his shoulder once Mama revealed that she knew there had been absolutely no way our parents would send us to Auradon Prep without some sort of master escape plan; knowing me as well as she does, Rose told them not to take me to mine and Evie's dorm room. With me not needing to be alone and her inability to be with me during the terrors, Rose insisted Ben let me sleep in his room. He slept on the chaise lounge, but he woke up when I screamed. He asked about the night terror, and I showed him. Telling him would have been too hard, and I know how to share memories. That was a lower level spell Rose taught me before we ever left the Isle. Ben told me that he could not, as a human being, send me back to Maleficent in good conscience ever again; that was honestly the most loved I'd ever felt up to that point, and that was just because someone cared about me despite only knowing the bare minimum about my life.", Mal answered, her words bringing tears to Aurora's eyes.

The Queen of Auroria kept her gaze down at her younger sister's words, her light pink dress and matching nails becoming more interesting by the second. Mal wondered if Aurora really had wanted to apologize when she had shown up; personally, the faerie girl thought it was more than likely that her half-sister had shown up in an attempt to save face for her daughter after the likely extensive amount of publicity issues Audrey had caused.

"You know, Mal, there's always someone like you.", Aurora finally said, and her violet eyes met Mal's emerald ones.

"What do you mean?", the girl in question asked, holding back a smile, wondering if her spoiled-brat half-sister was about to compliment her for something.

"Every last time I think I've finally done enough to get my father to not look at me like I've been nothing but a black mark on his reign because I never got the proper training to be Queen, which is because of that damn curse that your mother placed on me, someone _always_ manages to make me look like an idiot.", the Sleeping Beauty explained, not bothering to hide her smirk as tears formed in her younger sister's eyes.

"No one can make you look like an idiot, Aurora. Only your lack of empathy, and probably your lack of any and all sense and thinking, make you look like an idiot. In addition to that, I'm not even sure how I made you look like an idiot at all.", Mal forced out, not letting the tears break through the invisible barrier she imagined kept them.

"You told Audrey the truth, making her look like an elitist and making me look like a fool for not knowing about my father's history with your mother! You also embarrassed my mother in front of everyone of any sort of importance in Auradon!", it was this that made Mal shake her head and laugh.

"Wait, you actually think any of the kings, queens, and noble people out there care that your mother is embarrassed? She verbally assaulted a teenage girl who had done nothing to her, she made what happened into a big scene, and she was more worried about everyone thinking _your_ father was just as bad as the villains he helped lock away. If anything, those people probably, just based on what I've heard being discussed in the halls since I've been here, think everything you call an embarrassment is your just desserts after all these years of you acting as if you are somehow better than everyone else. In case you missed what's trending on social media right now, you're the same as every other family out there. Sorry.", the purple haired girl said, smirking.

"Oh, Belle has definitely gotten to you! That sounds so much like what she told me when I tried explaining how bad it looked for everyone when the United States of Auradon didn't have an experienced monarch to lead it if anything happened to them. Ella said that she and Henri were plenty experienced, and they made us look like such fools to the ambassador from Camelot!", Aurora exclaimed, and Mal snorted.

"Oh, I highly doubt anyone in this family gives a damn about Camelot! There's a reason we only have officials visit from there once or twice a year when Sherwood and Olympus send officials multiple times a year.", the girl said with a groan.

"I couldn't have said that better myself. Aurora, won't you be a dear and get the hell out of my kitchen?", Belle snarled, startling the arguing half-siblings.

"Don't mind if I do; oh, and Mal, I wouldn't expect to succeed if you try to get your title legitimized before you get married.", Aurora said haughtily before making a dramatic sweep from the room.

"What was that about?", Mal asked, and Belle sighed.

"Aurora is the queen of her father's domain; unless there is a record of Stefan claiming you as his child, she has the power to say that you aren't truly one of his heirs. For those who are still slaves to the old ways, the King of Auradon marrying a non-royal or non-noblewoman is shameful. While we obviously don't care, some people do. However, we can worry more about that after the coronation tomorrow. How about dinner?", the shrewd Queen of the United States of Auradon vanished as Belle explained Aurora's statement, and Mal's mother-in-law surfaced.

"We should probably get to the dining room before Papa, Uncle Henri, and the boys eat everything!", Mal laughed, and Belle nodded in agreement.

After the meal had been finished, Belle and Ella volunteered to wash the dishes. Elizabeth tried to object, but her stepdaughter was adamant. While they worked, the two women discussed the events of the day and their children.

"I think Aurora lives to irritate me! She actually thinks that it would be a problem if Ben married Mal without Mal being a completely legitimized princess!", Belle exclaimed as she handed a plate to Ella to dry.

"If it wasn't a problem for Adam or Henri, I doubt it'll be a problem for Ben! Why did she even show up here today?", Ella asked, and Belle snorted in a highly un-queenly manner.

"From what I heard outside the kitchens earlier, she was trying to get Mal to agree to be a good little sister and aunt, essentially forgiving Audrey and Leah for the trouble they caused. Once again, it's another black mark on the Ahlberg family image; in that family, image is everything.", the brunette surmised.

"I know I'm supposed to be kind and generous, but I really have a taste for revenge right now. Have any ideas?", the blonde responded hopefully.

"You know what? I actually might.", Belle said suddenly, and Ella was grinning.

"Do tell!", she insisted.

"The twins' birthday is the summer solstice, and we've been making tentative plans for a masque ball birthday party. Because I already know Mal is more than willing to have a long-term engagement, announcing both engagements that night would be great. I mean, how often do we get the chance to ram it down Aurora's throat just how much we don't care about royal bloodlines staying pure? Plus, Jane will have had the baby by then; we could add hers and Chad's engagement to the list as well. Aurora would fall into a dead faint on the spot!", Belle explained, clapping a laughing a bit as she ended her plan for revenge.

"I guess we'll just have to talk with our sons about this then. This is going to be the greatest event we've ever planned!", and with that, the two queens were scheming away in a mild fit of giggles.

 **A/N: Remember how I said I'd have more frequent updates soon? That one was my bad, guys! I should have counted on my stress levels staying high. Piece of advice to all readers who have yet to go to college: never trust someone from out of town until you've done a full psychological evaluation on them. It's a long story, but the lesson is ten times more valuable. I know it might seem like the plan and the remainder of the movie's plot is toast now, but I have my own plan in store.**

 **So, we saw a fair bit of Henri and Ella in this chapter. What did you all think of the Charmings? I really enjoyed writing from Ella's perspective, and I hope you all enjoyed reading it! Please write a review and hit that nifty little submit button!**


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